Magnier wanted fictitious names on FF drafts to keep anonymity

Multi-millionaire businessman Mr John Magnier made out two drafts payable to fictitious names because he wanted his £20,000 donation to the fund for Mr Brian Lenihan to be anonymous.

Giving evidence at the Moriarty tribunal, Mr Magnier confirmed the details of his statement, read out by counsel for the tribunal Mr Jerry Healy SC. He also wanted to "emphatically say that Mr Charles Haughey never approached me directly or made any personal request for funds for either himself, the Fianna Fail party or the Brian Lenihan fund".

Asked if he had had any indirect approach from Mr Haughey, he replied "no". He said he had had approaches from Fianna Fail for donations to the party but never from Mr Haughey.

Mr Magnier also told the tribunal he was not aware of Mr Haughey's financial difficulties or of contributions by other donors in the 1980s or before the tribunals began.

A former senator, Mr Magnier had been nominated to the Seanad by Mr Haughey in 1987. He told the tribunal he had seen Mr Lenihan in the Seanad and he was shocked by his appearance. He was then approached by Mr Paul Kavanagh, a Fianna Fail fund-raiser, who was seeking contributions to defray the costs of expensive medical treatment - a liver transplant - for Mr Lenihan in the US.

He was "only too glad" to support such a cause and agreed to give £20,000. Mr Magnier said he stressed at the time he wanted the contribution to be anonymous.

From investigations undertaken by his staff and by AIB of St Patrick's Bridge, Bridge Street in Cork where he had an account, he was satisfied that his contribution was made up of two bank drafts of £10,000 each drawn on that branch.

Mr Magnier said he wanted the donation anonymous "at both ends", both at home and "at the receiving end" and he regretted that it had to be brought out in public at all. Mr Healy said the tribunal was trying to establish how much was contributed to Mr Lenihan's fund and whether it was used for that purpose.

The businessman replied it was "no big deal that a few people knew about it but I would just prefer that it was anonymous". Mr Magnier agreed the evidence showed that to keep his donation anonymous he made the drafts out to two fictitious persons, "but I wouldn't remember it".

The first draft of £10,000 was made out to Jim Murphy and the second, dated the same, June 8th, 1989, was made out to Jim Casey.

He was not certain it was the first time he had had a draft made out to Jim Casey or Jim Murphy but he used fictitious names in this instance to preserve anonymity. He said the funds were debited to drawings and would have been repaid by the partners, but he had no explanation why two drafts were used. He did not recall if he was asked to make two drafts, so he could not say.

Mr Magnier said the first time he met Mr Kavanagh, a party fund-raiser, was when Mr Kavanagh came to lunch and "to my memory he asked for a donation" in 1989.

Mr Magnier said he agreed to give £20,000 because of the evidence but he would not have remembered if they had not found this documentation. He vaguely remembered making a contribution to the Brian Lenihan fund.

Mr Healy suggested he surely did not forget he had made a contribution. Mr Magnier said it was not something that was on his mind.

When Mr Healy said he "clearly" remembered his shock at Mr Lenihan's appearance, Mr Magnier replied that that was a different thing. The impression of seeing Mr Lenihan was more on his mind than the amount given.