A LIMERICK Detective Garda and a businessman are to go on trial next May charged with corruption offences.
A trial date of May 2, 2023 was fixed when the case was brought up for mention before Ms Justice Patricia Ryan at the Criminal Courts of Justice yesterday.
The case involves allegations that Det Garda David Bourke received a financial payment or gift from Stephen O’Sullivan in return for tipping him off about a Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) inquiry into Bawn Motors, Ballysimon Road, a car sales business of which Mr O’Sullivan was then a director of.
51 year-old Detective Bourke, with an address in County Limerick, is accused of two charges relating to “corruptly obtaining” a payment or gift from Mr O’Sullivan (40), during the course of his employment with An Garda Siochana.
Mr O’Sullivan, with an address at Farrehy, Broadford, County Limerick, is accused of corruptly providing or agreeing to provide Det Bourke with a payment or advantage in return for confidential information regarding the CAB investigation into his business.
All of charges, which come under the Criminal Justice (Corruption Offences) Act 2018, are alleged to have occurred at Bruree, County Limerick.
Det Bourke and Mr O’Sullivan were arrested separately on December 22, 2018, have been on bail, with strict conditions, for the past four years.
Their arrests arose out of a major investigation, led by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI), into suspected corruption by Gardaí in the Limerick division.
The two men were initially returned for trial before Limerick Circuit Criminal Court but the case was subsequently moved to Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
