A private detective hired to investigate a Dublin massage parlour was offered the attentions of women at £120 an hour, a judge heard yesterday. The detective and a colleague were later told that for this amount they could avail of a range of sexual services. The evidence was presented to Judge Yvonne Murphy at the Circuit Civil Court yesterday by Mr Timothy Sheehan, counsel for a firm of city landlords seeking to repossess its premises at South William Street, Dublin.
Mr Sheehan told Judge Murphy that Linden Ltd, Harcourt Street, Dublin, had rented the premises to Mr Thomas McDonnell, Royse Road, Phibsboro, Dublin, and suspected they were being used as a brothel.
Linden director Mr Dermot Coyne, Main Street, Lucan, told the court in an affidavit the use was in breach of the letting agreement and could leave the company open to criminal prosecution.
He said Mr McDonnell had advertised South William Street in the magazine In Dublin as providing top-class staff for "your personal attention" in a relaxed atmosphere which provided massage and "everything a man's heart desires".
To confirm its suspicions, the company had hired Insight Investigations which revealed, in a report of a taped phone call and a visit to the premises, details of the services offered.
Mr Coyne said he had discovered from gardai that Mr McDonnell had been convicted of living off immoral earnings in June 1991 and ordered to pay £4,500 to the Wellwoman Centre. Despite requests to Mr McDonnell to desist from illegal use of the premises, he had refused to do so and notice of forfeiture of the lease had been served on him.
Mr Sheehan told the court he believed Mr McDonnell had no bona-fide defence to the landlords' claim for possession and that an appearance had been entered in court solely for the purposes of delay.
When Judge Murphy granted Linden Ltd an order for possession, Mr McDonnell sought a stay of execution. Judge Murphy said she would consider this if he gave the court an undertaking not to carry out anything illegal on the premises for the period of the stay. When this was not forthcoming she granted the possession order.