The Prisons Service has not asked the Mountjoy Prison governor to explain why he used official notepaper in letters soliciting sponsorship for a GAA club, and has no plans to do so.
The director general of the service, Mr Sean Aylward, telephoned the governor, Mr John Lonergan, yesterday to assure him he was not being asked to explain himself, contrary to a newspaper report.
The move followed a separate report, in the Examiner, that Mr Lonergan had used prison notepaper when writing to a number of companies - some of them suppliers to Mountjoy - asking them to take advertisements in the programme for the Kilmacud Crokes All-Ireland Hurling Sevens tournament.
The advertisements ranged in cost from £80 for a quarter-page to £500 for a full page. The letters said Mr Lonergan was "associated" with the Kilmacud club and, assuring potential advertisers that their support would be "greatly appreciated", asked them to contact him or his secretary.
Mr Lonergan could not be contacted by The Irish Times last night, but his secretary, Ms Eithne Mulhern, said there was "nothing illegal or untoward" in the letters. "Kilmacud is a hurling club. John is dedicated to keeping young people out of jail, and sport is one of the things that helps do that," she said.
She added that if Mountjoy suppliers were among those circulated, this was not deliberate, as Mr Lonergan would not know who the prison's suppliers were. Asked if he had any regrets about using headed paper, she said: "None whatsoever."
