Morris Tribunal hears from 'silver bullet' witness
A key witness who falsely claimed he was threatened with death by a silver bullet is to give evidence at the Morris Tribunal today.
Bernard Conlon, from Cartron Bay in Sligo, is at the heart of the tribunal’s investigation into false allegations which were made against members of the extended McBrearty family.
He made a statement which accused Mark McConnell and Michael Peoples of threatening Conlon with a sliver bullet at his home in Sligo in July 1998 to prevent him from giving evidence in an after-hours court case involving their cousin Frank McBrearty Junior.
Mr Conlon has claimed that he was prompted by gardaí to stay drinking in the McBrearty’s pub after hours in August 1997, so that a prosecution could be taken against them.
The tribunal has already heard evidence from gardaí who were present on the night and from friends of Mr Conlon, who warned him repeatedly to leave.
Mr Conlon will be questioned about these events and his claims that gardaí also put him up to making the false "silver bullet" allegations against Mark McConnell and Michael Peoples.
Both men were arrested by gardaí for questioning in 1998 and 1999 but the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) refused to take a case against them.
The DPP’s professional officer Michael Mooney wrote in 1999 that the allegations made by Conlon, in which he claimed that he had been shown bullets and told “there is one for you and one for White” [Sergeant John White]” read somewhat theatrically and had not the ring of reality about them.
Mr Conlon eventually admitted the complaint was false and said it had been made at the instigation of Sgt White.
He was convicted of making false statements against Mr McConnell and Mr Peoples. Sgt White was cleared of any wrongdoing in a court case.
Mr Conlon received around £2,000 in witness expenses for making multiple court appearances at the behest of gardaí.
However, a rank and file officer, Garda John Nicholson, pleaded guilty to forging the loss of earnings certificates for Conlon, at a district court in Sligo in 2002. The judge did not record a conviction against the garda, who then retired from the force.
Mr Conlon is expected to give evidence at the tribunal for several days.
