Payments to Redmond believed to total millions

The scale of the private payments made to Mr George Redmond when he was assistant Dublin city and county manager has started to emerge at the Flood tribunal.

Informed sources now say the total payments received by Mr Redmond during his career in planning and county management could run into millions of pounds.

The tribunal heard yesterday that in 1988 he had investments totalling £660,000. In that year alone he received £171,000, which he lodged in a variety of bank accounts. The next year he lodged over £94,000, at a time when his salary was just £29,000.

Asked if he could identify the source of the payments, he said he could not. On several occasions he emphasised that he had done "nothing unlawful". He said he was "a very heavy saver".

The amounts disclosed yesterday by the tribunal exceed all previous estimates of Mr Redmond's wealth, even those made by the Criminal Assets Bureau, which is conducting a separate investigation into his affairs.

Mr Pat Hanratty SC, for the tribunal, pointed out yesterday that Mr Redmond lodged more in 1988 alone than he earned in net income between 1980 and 1989.

At present the tribunal is dealing only with payments made to him in 1988 and 1989, the period in which, Mr James Gogarty alleges, corrupt payments were made to Mr Redmond.

The chairman of the tribunal, Mr Justice Flood, yesterday urged Mr Redmond to co-operate by furnishing the tribunal with copies of the five statements he has made to detectives of the CAB. In those he gives further details of the payments he received from business and political figures.

Mr Redmond was arrested by CAB officers in July and charged with failing to file tax returns over 10 years. This followed his arrest last February at Dublin Airport after he returned from the Isle of Man with £300,000 in cash and cheques in his possession.

In Dublin Castle yesterday Mr Hanratty repeatedly pressed Mr Redmond for information on the source of his wealth. He accused the witness of being coy and "playing cat and mouse" with the tribunal. "It was quite clear you were receiving substantial packages of cash in return for what you described as advice," Mr Hanratty said.

But Mr Redmond was unable to shed much light on his enormous wealth. He said he was "a very heavy saver and over the years I made investments of various sorts."

He originally declared eight bank accounts to the tribunal, but lawyers subsequently discovered that he had 33 accounts in a variety of financial institutions. Many were opened under two Irish variations of his name.

He failed to mention his accounts in the Isle of Man until challenged on them by tribunal lawyers, it emerged yesterday.

He admitted receiving an envelope containing £25,000 in cash from Mr Gogarty at a "clandestine" meeting at Clontarf Castle Hotel, Dublin, in 1988 or 1989. Mr Gogarty handed him the envelope containing the cash, patted him and said: "This is for you, George," he told the tribunal.

He said the payment was given for his help in introducing Mr Gogarty to Mr Michael Bailey, who bought the Murphy-owned lands at Forest Road in Swords.

In earlier evidence, the former assistant Dublin city and county manager claimed there was no legal basis for county councils to levy charges for roads and drainage on builders who were developing housing estates. He denied an allegation by Mr Gogarty that the planning advice he gave the Murphy Group about their lands in Swords cost Dublin county council over £100,000 in levies.

Mr Redmond is expected to complete his evidence to the tribunal today.