Murder accused Mr John Gilligan is innocent of the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin and has no knowledge of what occurred on the Naas dual carriageway on June 26th, 1996, his defence counsel told the Special Criminal Court yesterday.
Mr Terence McDonald QC told the court it was his client's case that he was innocent as far as the murder of the journalist is concerned. He also said it had always been the accused's case that he had no knowledge of what occurred on the Naas dual carriageway.
Mr McDonald's comments came during cross-examination of protected witness Russell Warren, who denied that alleged conversations he had with Mr Gilligan about the murder were "a figment of his fertile imagination" and " a nonsense and a lie".
Warren said under cross-examination that Mr Gilligan, Brian Meehan and himself were present at a garage in Terenure about a week before the murder to inspect the motorbike used in the murder.
He denied a suggestion by Mr McDonald that Mr Gilligan was "never anywhere near the bike or Terenure" on that occasion.
Mr McDonald said the defence rejected allegations made by Warren that Mr Gilligan instructed him to make trips abroad with large sums of money.
Re-examined by prosecuting counsel Mr Peter Charleton SC, Warren said that John Gilligan gave him part of the registration of a number plate of a red Opel Calibra that he was to look for in Naas on the day of the murder. He said he either rang Mr Gilligan or Mr Gillgan rang him four or five times on the day of the murder.
Warren also said he had stopped delivering money for Mr Gilligan or his associates just before he was arrested in September 1996.
Earlier Warren said a garda detective paid him a lump sum of £7,000 around the time he made a statement claiming he witnessed the murder of journalist Ms Veronica Guerin.
Warren said he was given the money by Det Garda Bernie Hanley around April 1997 and he signed a receipt for it. He also told defence counsel that Det Garda Hanley had given him £1,920 in December 1996.
Warren said the money was his own money from his industrial cleaning business and was not the proceeds of criminal activity.
He said the money was in one of two briefcases found by gardai at his father's house and confiscated by them.
Warren denied he was a Garda informer or that Det Garda Hanley had recruited him to pass on information to him.
The trial continues today.