A COMPANY director has denied before the High Court that developer Seán Dunne instructed him to “get” a businesswoman, whose cleaning company is being sued for alleged overcharging.
Thomas Martin, a director of Hollybrook (Brighton Road) Management Co Ltd, said Mr Dunne was unhappy with Gina Farrell, of All First Property Management Ltd, trading as Gina Farrell Cleaning Services, following her allegations that Mr Dunne had unauthorised access to her mobile phone.
Mr Martin denied Mr Dunne had told him to “get that woman” and said he personally took the decision to bring the High Court case alleging overcharging.
Later yesterday, Paul Burns SC, for Hollybrook, said he wanted to make clear there was no substance to the complaints about phone interference. Those complaints were investigated by gardaí and no action was taken, Mr Burns said.
Hollybrook is suing the Farrell firm over alleged overcharging and double-charging for cleaning services provided at an apartment complex managed by Hollybrook at Brighton Road, Foxrock, Dublin, between 2003 and 2006.
Ms Farrell, Dangan Park, Kimmage Road West, denies the claims. She also claims Hollybrook is under Mr Dunne’s control and the action has been taken against her “solely at the behest and instructions of Mr Dunne” because of a “vendetta” by him against her.
The Brighton Road apartments were built by Mr Dunne’s Mountbrook Homes and Hollybrook was appointed as the management company, the court heard.
Under continuing cross-examination yesterday by Roughan Banim, for the defendants, Mr Martin said, following the phone allegations, Mr Dunne was unhappy with Ms Farrell and had said he did not want her company cleaning his offices in Merrion Square any more.
He said he then wrote to Ms Farrell terminating the contract.
Mr Martin also told the court he had terminated other contracts held by Ms Farrell for an apartment complex in Celbridge, a joint development between Mountbrook and another company, and a Mountbrook/Ballymore apartment development in Greystones.
He terminated those contracts after discovering alterations to logbooks for cleaning services at the Brighton Road apartments.
Mr Martin previously told the court that alterations were made to logbooks kept by a firm which provided concierge services and recorded all the daily comings and goings at the apartment complex.
Numerous alterations and insertions were made to the logs which recorded that two cleaners arrived at the complex when that was not the case, he said.