Money laundering suspect given bail
A Co Cork chef arrested as part of a garda investigation into IRA money laundering had his bail conditions varied by the Special Criminal Court in Dublin today to allow him to visit his parents.
Don Bullman (aged 30), a chef and father of two , of Fernwood Crescent, Leghanamore, Wilton, Co Cork was charged in February with membership of an illegal organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the IRA on February 16.
Bullman was granted bail on his own bond of €500, an independent surety of €30,000, ordered to report daily to Togher Garda station in Co Cork, to surrender his passport and not to travel outside Co Cork.
The court also ordered him not to associate with anyone convicted of subversive crime or to associate with four named individuals - Conor Mc Laughlin, Christopher Mc Elhinney, Tom Hanlon and George Hegarty.
Today Bullman's counsel Ms Anne Rowland BL applied to have Bullman's bail conditions varied to allow him to visit his parents at their home at Naas, Co Kildare and to stay overnight.
Mr Justice Richard Johnson, presiding, said the court would vary the bail on condition that Bullman gave the gardaí twenty four hours notice before he left Co Cork.
Last February Detective Superintendent Diarmuid O' Sullivan of the Special Detective Unit, objected to bail for Bullman and said that he believed Bullman would interfere with evidence if granted bail.
He said that gardaí had found a bag containing a Daz box and the box contained over €94,000 wrapped in three individual wrappings of €30,000 each when Bullman was arrested at Heuston Station in Dublin in a northern registered jeep.
The Detective Supt said that Bullman was "a central individual" to the activities of the IRA prior to February 16 and that activity was "a money laundering operation for the IRA, in which he is central".
The Det Supt said: "I have an apprehension he will continue to launder money for an unlawful organisation, the IRA.''
Bullman, in evidence, said: "I am not a member of any unlawful organisation and never was.'' He also denied that he was in the IRA and agreed to give any undertaking sought by the court.
