The father of Brian Meehan, the only person convicted of the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin, yesterday won an appeal against a Garda refusal to grant him a taxi licence.
Mr Kevin Meehan (62), Stanaway Road, Kimmage, Dublin, was given the go ahead to drive a cab, despite Garda claims that he was not a fit person to do so.
Dublin District Court heard the Garda believed that up to £400,000 sterling lodged to a Vienna bank account by Mr Meehan for his son Brian in 1996 was the proceeds of cigarette smuggling.
An attempt on Mr Meehan's life by a gunman at his front door also made the Garda believe he was not suitable to drive a taxi.
Mr Meehan denied he was involved in smuggling or organised crime.
"I am a person of good character. I know my life and I know the way I live my life," Mr Meehan told the court.
The court heard that he served two years in prison on a money-laundering charge, but this was later overturned by the Court of Criminal Appeal, which did not order a retrial.
He told gardaí, when he applied for a taxi licence, that this had destroyed his family.
He denied telling gardaí in the Carriage Office - which oversees taxi licensing - that the money in the Vienna account was from Brian's life assurance policy.
He needed the licence to earn a living because he could not claim social welfare and was, along with his wife, supporting his grandson, Brian junior (14), who is Brian's son.
His lawyer argued that he was being made pay for his son's behaviour and, unlike an estimated 1,400 of Dublin's taxi drivers and hackneys, he does not have a criminal conviction.
Judge Patrick Brady rejected Garda concerns. He said the attempt on Mr Meehan's life, along with his family responsibilities, meant that he "obviously has to be careful about his personal safety".
Judge Brady said he took into account the fact there were no pending prosecutions against Mr Meehan in relation to the money in Vienna or other matters. He therefore granted the licence.
The court heard Mr Meehan previously held a taxi licence between 1992 and 2000, when he worked on and off as a cabbie, as well as with his brother's roofing firm.
In addition to serving life for the murder of Veronica Guerin, Brian Meehan also received sentences ranging from five to 20 years for drugs and firearms offences.