A garage-owner suspected of handling stolen car parts was allowed to deliver the evidence to a Garda station, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court has been told. As he was bringing material found in his garage, some of it fell off and was collected by a Garda truck.
Det Garda John Ryan said he was later too embarrassed to tell the DPP why he had not proceeded with the case against Mr Martin Wallace, the owner of Stackstown Motors.
It was the fifth day of the trial of Det Garda Ryan (36), of Newtown Park, Blessington, Co Wicklow, who has pleaded not guilty to obtaining £260 from Det Sgt Patrick Normile by falsely pretending that he owned a Nissan Micra motor engine in August 1994.
The engine was part of a car which had originally been stolen in England and allegedly recovered by Det Garda Ryan in Stackstown Motors.
Det Supt Martin Callinan read from an interview in which he questioned Det Garda Ryan about the Nissan Micra engine. Det Garda Ryan was asked why he did not respond to requests from the Chief State Solicitor's Office for further information on the Nissan Micra case. He said he did not want them to know about the arrangement whereby Mr Martin Wallace delivered allegedly stolen car parts found in his garage to the Garda station.
Det Garda Ryan said he knew of occasions where gardai had not returned files to the DPP and he did not think there was anything wrong with it. Asked if he was making any allegations about gardai, he said he was not.
He agreed that some of the evidence brought to the station was later given to a Traveller for scrap. Asked if he agreed with this practice, he replied that he did not, but he was just carrying out orders.
During further questioning, Det Garda Ryan said Det Sgt Normile expressed an interest in the stolen Nissan Micra's engine, which had been left beside a shed on the grounds of Rathfarnham Garda station.
Det Garda Ryan said he told Det Sgt Normile to ignore it because it was to be returned to its rightful owner. He said Det Sgt Normile mentioned it again as he was removing a car battery from a car held in Rathfarnham station for use in his own car. Asked if he was making an allegation against Det Sgt Normile, he said he was not.
Det Garda Ryan denied he sold the engine to Det Garda Brendan Cahill or that Det Sgt Normile passed on £280 to him as payment for it. He also denied he had returned £20 "luck money" to Det Garda Cahill.
Det Supt Callinan put it to Det Garda Ryan that he had returned car parts to Mr Wallace without authority, to which Det Garda Ryan replied, "That's a lie."
Asked if Mr Wallace contacted him to have the gearbox of the car returned, Det Garda Ryan replied that he had nothing to say.
Mr Wallace was tendered as a prosecution witness but was not asked any direct questions. He agreed with Mr Erwin Mill-Arden SC, defending, that he had a good number of previous convictions. The trial continues before Judge Dominic Lynch and a jury.