‘Callinan ordered me to run smear campaign against Maurice Mccabe’
Ex-press officer tells tribunal of bid ‘to discredit garda’
TRIBUNAL YESTERDAY
Supt David Taylor in Dublin yesterday Sgt Maurice Mccabe
At the Disclosures Tribunal, Supt David Taylor added former commissioner Callinan told him the whistleblower had been motivated by revenge.
He alleged Mr Callinan told him Mr Mccabe was making claims about gardai quashing penalty points because he was motivated by maliciousness as he had been subject to a probe over an unfounded sexual offence allegation.
Mr Taylor yesterday said: “I was given specific instructions by Commissioner Callinan to take every opportunity I had with the media to drop into conversations that, if they bring up Sgt Mccabe, if I was meeting any of those journalists, to say there’s a back story here.”
He added Mr Callinan told him the alleged sexual offence had been fully investigated and gone to the DPP, who decided there would be no prosecution.
In a 2016 protected disclosure, which was shown to the tribunal, Mr Taylor said: “I can confirm there was a campaign at the highest level in An Garda Siochana involving the then commissioner Martin Callinan and then deputy commissioner Noirin O’sullivan to discredit Maurice Mccabe.
FRUSTRATED
“I recall I was to brief the media that Sgt Mccabe was motivated by maliciousness and revenge.”
Mr Taylor said Mr Callinan had been deeply frustrated by allegations of quashing of penalty points by Sgt Mccabe.
He added anything that reflected badly on Garda bosses could “not be tolerated”.
Asked if he saw anything improper in briefing journalists about Mr Mccabe, Mr Taylor said: “It’s not for me to question the Garda commissioner.”
He said he sent hundreds of messages to Mr Callinan and Ms O’sullivan to update them when Sgt Mccabe was discussed in the media but denied orders for the smear campaign were sent by text.
Mr Taylor, who worked for the Garda press office between 2012 and 2014, said: “The instructions were given to me verbally by the commissioner.”
He also claimed he heard Mr Callinan call Sgt Mccabe a “kiddie fiddler” after a Public Accounts Committee meeting.
I had to brief the media that he was motivated by revenge SUPT DAVID TAYLOR