COUNSEL for the Tribunal Patrick Quinn SC cross-examined Mr Barry Pitcher, a senior banker with AIB’s Corporate Management division, concerning Allied Irish Bank’s role in funding the Quarryvale development.
AIB appointed Mr. Pitcher as co-director of Barkhill Ltd, based on the bank’s possession of a 20% shareholding of developer Tom Gilmartin’s company Barkhill Ltd. Mr Gilmartin had borrowed 4.5 million pounds from AIB by 1992, using it to purchase a tract of land adjacent to the newly built N4 motorway – Quarryvale.
When Barkhill was audited in 1992 by DeLoitte & Touche they found that the company, despite its significant equity portfolio, “had no formal books and records and that [what records existed] were incomplete and deficient”.
Mr. Pitcher signed off on a series of loans from AIB to Barkhill during ’91 and ’92.
He also claimed to be completely unaware of the purpose behind a series of loans to Barkhill which eventually found their way into former Fianna Fail press secretary Frank Dunlop’s company Shefran Ltd.
Mr Dunlop distributed an array of large ‘donations’ to local Councillors in 1991 and 1992 in order to facilitate a crucial rezoning vote for the Quarryvale development in West Dublin (now the Liffey Valley Centre).
By 1992 Cork developer Owen O’Callaghan had “muscled-in” on 40% of Tom Gilmartin’s company. The Mayo-born UK-based developer retained 40% of Barkhill, while AIB took 20% and would exercise a balance between the two competing developers.
Mr. Pitcher admitted that he had authorised retrospective loans in relation to Barkhill Ltd, including a 1.4 million markup in 1992.
Ends
Filed under: irish news, the mahon tribunal | Tagged: Add new tag, AIB, Barkhill, Barry Pitcher, bertie ahern, quarryvale, the mahon tribunal, tom gilmartin
