Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The individual referred to by the Deputy as a whistleblower sent a letter dated 22 April 2010 to the then Minister for Defence, Mr. Tony Killeen. The letter, which contained a number of allegations pertaining to serving and former Defence Forces personnel, was brought to the attention of the military authorities. The letter was referred to the military authorities without providing personal details for the whistleblower as the letter had specifically requested that the home address of the whistleblower would not be given to the Irish Army. The letter indicated that the author had verbally received his information from another party and through sight of documents held in that other party's possession.

I am advised by the military authorities that in July 2010, military police investigators met with the other party in the presence of his legal team and some of the allegations contained in the letter were discussed. The whistleblower appeared to be a third party to the matters in question with no personal involvement in any of the alleged activities and had specifically requested that home address details would not be given to the military authorities. Accordingly, it was not considered appropriate for military police personnel to interview him.

The investigation, when completed, found no evidence to support the suggestion that Defence Forces equipment was utilised in any of the alleged activities, nor was there any evidence found of any illegal arms purchase or sales. In addition, the investigation undertaken by the military authorities found that Defence Forces regulations were not breached.

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