Mr Frank Connolly, the Sunday Business Post journalist, was yesterday recalled to the witness-box to answer questions about his interviews with Mr James Gogarty.
Mr Connolly had made available tapes, transcripts and notes of his interviews with Mr Gogarty to the tribunal. He wrote seven articles in 1996/97.
Cross-examined by Mr Michael Cush SC, for the Murphy Group, Mr Connolly said he had two or three face-to-face meetings with Mr Gogarty. He had his first meeting with him in March 1996 and the last in September 1997. There were phone calls in that time also.
Mr Connolly said he would have also talked to Mr Gogarty's solicitor at that time, Mr Kevin Neary.
Mr Connolly said Mr Gogarty had told him the meeting at Mr Ray Burke's house took place a few days before the general election of June 1989.
When Mr Gogarty told him (Mr Connolly) the cash was in a brown paper bag, Mr Connolly said he had laughed. Mr Gogarty had said it was closed and he had checked it out in Santry. Mr Cush said the bag had become an envelope or two envelopes at the tribunal.
Mr Cush said Mr Gogarty had given an indication that at the end of the meeting he was pressing for some commitment on value for money.
Mr Cush said: "I want to suggest to you, Mr Connolly, that Mr Gogarty told you something in this context radically different to what he has told this tribunal." Mr Cush said Mr Gogarty told the tribunal that when he questioned Mr Burke as to commitment as to value for money, Mr Burke said that Mr Murphy and Mr Bailey were well aware of how he had honoured his commitments in the past.
Mr Gogarty told Mr Connolly something different. Mr Gogarty told Mr Connolly that Mr Burke was alleged to have said he had done this before with Mr Bailey and he had to take his word for it. Mr Cush said there was no mention of his client in that paragraph.
Mr Connolly said there was no mention of Mr Murphy, no. Mr Cush said Mr Gogarty's allegation about giving Mr Burke the schedule of lands was not until the 18th month of the contacts with Mr Connolly.
Mr Connolly agreed it was new then.