A key witness in the Morris tribunal gave information on republican paramilitaries to Donegal detectives in 1990 in a series of late-night meetings in the car-park of her father's business, the tribunal was told yesterday.
Det Matt Tolan said Ms Adrienne McGlinchey provided him with information regarding IRA weapons dumps. She also claimed to have access to a flat in Ballyshannon where a gun "taken from an RUC man" was hidden.
However, Det Tolan said the information never led to the gun or any weapons dumps ever being uncovered. He said that in 1990 Ms McGlinchey had been seen near "PIRA flats" in Rahan and that that had brought her to the attention of gardaí.
He met Ms McGlinchey in 1990 when her Montego car "shot across" the road in front of him while he was travelling in an unmarked Garda car in Letterkenny. He followed her, stopped her car, and found maps in the vehicle which she was trying to conceal.
Under cross-examination by Mr Paul Murray, for Ms McGlinchey, Det Tolan said the maps were of the Border area around Coshquin, Co Derry.
Weeks later, after an IRA bomb exploded at Coshquin, killing six people - five of them British soldiers - Det Tolan said Ms McGlinchey claimed she knew nothing about the incident. However, she then became remorseful and agreed to supply him with information on the IRA.
Ms McGlinchey met with Det Tolan and his partner, Det Hugh Smith, a number of times in car-parks in Letterkenny, including the car-park of her father's Golden Grill business, it was claimed. Meetings also took place in the car-parks of a nearby church and post office. During one such meeting, after the Coshquin bomb, Det Tolan said Ms McGlinchey handed him and his partner a number of photographs. These "meant nothing" to him at the time. They were of a house in a housing estate in Derry, with an address attached.
However, Det Tolan said that when he received feedback regarding the photographs it emerged they were of the home of "Mr Gillespie".
The civilian forced by the IRA to drive the 1,000lb bomb into the Coshquin army checkpoint was Mr Patrick Gillespie. He also died during the attack.
Mr Murray put it to Det Tolan that he was lying about the alleged meetings with Ms McGlinchey. Det Tolan said despite the fact that one of the car-parks was used by the patrons of a number of pubs, B&Bs and a nightclub, his meetings with Ms McGlinchey had always been conducted "discreetly".
