AN employee of Mr Hugh Tunney, the owner of Sachs Hotel Dublin, denied in the High Court yesterday she had made phone calls to Britain making allegations about the man who leases the hotel and his brother, now a Garda Chief Superintendent.
It is claimed by the lessee of Sachs, Mr Philip Smith, through his company of which he is director, Genport Ltd, that phone calls were made alleging he was laundering drug money for the IRA through the hotel and that his brother, a senior Garda officer, assisted him in this.
He claimed the calls were made on lines listed in the names of Tunney Meats Ltd and/or Mr Tunney, who leased the hotel to him. The calls were made to the South East Regional Crime Squad of the British police and the Dorchester Hotel in London.
Genport Ltd, Upper George's Street, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin, is counterclaiming against Crofter Properties Ltd, Philipsburgh Avenue, Dublin, of which Mr Tunney is the ultimate owner.
Crofter Properties denies the claims. It states that, if any of the phone calls were made, they were not made for or on behalf of or with the consent or knowledge of Crofier, its servants or agents. It denied that Crofter, by itself, its servants or agents made any communication with the parties referred to in the counterclaim.
Genport claimed that between January 1993 and November 1994, a series of malicious, untrue and defamatory phone calls were made by or on behalf of Crofter from phone lines in Classiebawn Castle,
Mullaghmore, Co Sligo in the names of Tunney Meats Ltd and/or Mr Hugh Tunney as subscriber.
In these phone calls, it is claimed a female caller falsely and maliciously made the allegations.
Yesterday, Ms Caroline Devine, who said she was in sales and marketing and PR for Tunney Hotels, giving evidence, said she had been working for Mr Tunney for 20 years. She was based in the Gresham Hotel but was also the estate manageress at Classiebawn Castle on which Mr Tunney had a lease.
Ms Devine said she was told allegations had been made to the police and a hotel in Britain and she was asked about them. "I know nothing about those calls." She said she was told a mystery voice had made allegations and, because she was the only female working in the castle and the numbers were on Classiebawn's bills, she was asked if she made them. "I said `no, I did not make those calls'."
A former Deputy Commissioner, Mr Thomas O'Reilly, said a report was prepared which contained information about certain allegations made against Mr Smyth and his brother, Chief Superintendent Paul Smyth. An "investigation was carried out.
"The outcome of the investigation was that there was no truth in allegations against the two men, Mr O'Reilly said.
The case before Mr Justice McCracken continues today.