O'Callaghan denies knowledge of Larkin lodgement

CORK DEVELOPER Owen O'Callaghan has said he had absolutely no knowledge of a lodgement of more than £28,000 to the account of Celia Larkin, former partner of ex-taoiseach Bertie Ahern, in December 1994.

Mr O'Callaghan told the Mahon tribunal he had no information about the lodgement.

The planning tribunal is questioning Mr O'Callaghan as part of the Quarryvale II module, an investigation into allegations of corruption surrounding the rezoning of land on which the Liffey Valley shopping centre is built.

Counsel for the tribunal Patricia Dillon SC said Mr O'Callaghan's lobbyist Frank Dunlop travelled to New York in November 1994 for a Fianna Fáil fundraiser and also met American financiers Chilton O'Connor.

The financiers were considering backing a proposal from Mr O'Callaghan to develop a national stadium in west Dublin.

Mr O'Callaghan said he knew nothing about Mr Dunlop's trip or his meeting with Chilton O'Connor.

Ms Dillon told the tribunal that on December 5th that year, Ms Larkin lodged £28,772.90 to her account in AIB.

The tribunal had heard the money was the proceeds of £30,000 sterling brought to Dublin by Manchester-based businessman Micheál Wall, towards the purchase of a house in Drumcondra.

Ms Dillon said AIB official John Garrett gave evidence that AIB only bought £1,921.53 worth of sterling on December 5th. She said Mr Garrett had explained that if $45,000 had been exchanged on that day, it would have equated to £28,772.90.

She asked Mr O'Callaghan whether he had any information on how that might have come about. "Absolutely not," Mr O'Callaghan said.

"I ask you that, Mr O'Callaghan, because in the previous month your political lobbyist had gone to New York and met with your bankers," Ms Dillon said.

She said Mr Dunlop was also there for a fundraiser, "which presumably would have been carried out in dollars".

"In those circumstances, do you know of any connection between those events in New York and this lodgement to Ms Larkin's account in December?" she asked.

"I am sorry, I have absolutely no knowledge at all of this," Mr O'Callaghan replied.

Ms Dillon also asked Mr O'Callaghan about the tax designation of his shopping centre development at Golden Island, Athlone, Co Westmeath.

She said the designation order was signed on December 14th, 1994, on the last day of the Fianna Fáil government, by then minister for the environment Michael Smith and Mr Ahern, then minister for finance.

Developer Tom Gilmartin had told the tribunal that Mr O'Callaghan said he paid Mr Ahern for tax designation, but Mr Ahern had not delivered, and then taoiseach Albert Reynolds had "put a gun to his head" on the last day of government and forced him to sign it.

Mr O'Callaghan denied making contact with Mr Smith or Mr Ahern in the last days of the 1994 government. He did speak to Mr Reynolds, he said, but it had nothing to do with Athlone.

"I never paid any money to anybody for designation," he said.

Mr O'Callaghan conceded that he kept secret payments of £10,000 and £20,000 to the late Liam Lawlor.

The two sums, paid in September 1994 and March 1995, were treated as political contributions in the books of Mr O'Callaghan's company, Riga Ltd. However, Mr O'Callaghan insisted they were for "services rendered".