Jury still to decide on Cork corruption case
The jury in the case against a former managing director of South Cork Enterprise Board who denies receiving corrupt payments for securing job creation grants for a company was sent to a hotel overnight as they have not yet reached a verdict.
Judge Con Murphy sent the six men and six women away to a Cork city hotel with members of An Garda Síochána and told them to return to continue their deliberations at 10 am tomorrow.
James Brennan (age 59), of 42 Rockgrove, Midleton, Co Cork, denied 14 counts of receiving corrupt payments, totalling £4,500 punts on various occasions between December 10 1996 and May 20 1999.
Tom Creed, senior counsel, compared the alleged offences to 'bungs' received by some Premiership soccer managers when dealing with player transfers.
Mr Creed said South Cork Enterprise Board Ltd. (SCEB) was a public body and the accused was the managing director at the time.
One of the board’s functions was to support small businesses who employ less than ten employees. Such companies applied for employment grants to fund extra employees to grow their business.
The senior counsel said corruption arose when someone in a public body was getting payments over and above what they should receive for doing something that they should do anyway.
He said the 14 charges related to seven incidents in which it was alleged that the defendant received a total of £4,500 (punts) in corrupt payments. The charges are brought under legislation including the Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889 and the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995.
During the trial, prosecution witness, Pat Collins of Celtic Shades Ltd. in Youghal, lampshade manufacturers, was asked to go through various grants that he received through South Cork Enterprise Board Ltd. (SCEB). Mr Collins said that each time a grant was received, a payment of 10% was then made by his company to James Brennan.
“What did you get?” Mr Creed SC asked Mr Collins.
Mr Collins replied: “What we received was his assistance in maximizing the grants that our company got.”
However, James Brennan went through detailed documentary evidence of grants paid to that company and stated that he never received payments in relation to those matters.
Defence senior counsel, James O’Mahony, said, “Mr Collins says that when he got his first grant you delivered it and he gave you 10 % of the grant as a payment for getting the maximum grant. Did you get a payment from him like that?”
Brennan replied, “I did not.”
He then went on to testify that in respect of this particular job creation grant, the company did not even receive the maximum grant. “They got the maximum available but not the maximum they applied for.”
The defendant give similar evidence in respect of other job creation grants and alleged corrupt payments.
