A garda testifying at the Barr tribunal has denied telling a colleague that he was "nearly shot in the head" by a stray bullet fired by a member of the Emergency Response Unit during the shooting of Mr John Carthy, writes Olivia Kelly.
Mr Carthy was killed by the unit outside his house in Abbeylara, Co Longford, in April 2002, after he emerged onto the road carrying a loaded gun.
Garda Eugene Waters said he did not tell Garda Dave Martin that a bullet "whizzed past" his head, almost hitting him, moments before Mr Carthy was shot.
The claim is contained in a supplementary statement made to the tribunal in July by Mr Tom Walsh, a cousin of Mr Carthy.
Mr Walsh had taken the stand in July, but his evidence was suspended. He was asked to furnish a new statement, when he made allegations that had not been contained in his original statement to the tribunal.
Garda Waters was not named in the allegations.
However, in his new statement Mr Walsh has detailed a conversation he had with Garda Martin, during which he claims Garda Martin said that local gardaí had been unhappy with the Emergency Response Unit.
And also that one local member, Garda Waters, had said he was almost shot by a stray ERU bullet. Garda Waters, who was positioned at Mr Walsh's house, two houses away from Mr Carthy's at the time of the shooting, told the tribunal yesterday that he had no such conversation with Garda Martin.
Mr Walsh is to reappear before the tribunal later.
Meanwhile, counsel for the Carthy family, Mr Michael O'Higgins, said yesterday that attempts made by gardaí to locate a solicitor named by Mr Carthy were an "utter waste of time".
Sgt Jarlath Folan told the tribunal that he had been in Granard Garda station at 2 p.m. on the day Mr Carthy was shot, when a call came through from Mr Kevin Ireland, a friend of Mr Carthy's.
Mr Ireland told Sgt Dan Monaghan, who took the call, that he had earlier been phoned by Mr Carthy, who mentioned a solicitor named Mr Finucane.
Mr Carthy had been making requests to see a solicitor since the previous evening, but had not mentioned anyone by name.
Sgt Monaghan and two colleagues proceeded to look for the named solicitor in the phone book and by calling directory inquiries, Sgt Folan said.
Mr O'Higgins put it to Sgt Folan that he would have been aware that many solicitors would not practise under their own names, if they were employed by a firm or if they had bought the name of a long established firm.
"From this point of view trying to find a solicitor in the phone book would be an utter waste of time."
Sgt Jarlath said he believed his colleagues had been genuine in their attempts.
"But if the solicitor's name was not on a plate on his door, looking up the phone book would not produce a result," Mr O'Higgins said.
"That is correct, I accept that," Sgt Jarlath replied.