Digicel owner denies bribery

From Caribbean360:

DUBLIN, Ireland, Thursday March 24, 2011 - An investigation in Ireland has found that Digicel owner Denis O'Brien made payments to a former government minister to help him secure a mobile licence 16 years ago that helped him make a fortune and branch off into his lucrative mobile phone operations in the region - a charge he has vehemently denied.

Justice Michael Moriarty, who headed the tribunal, concluded that OBrien paid Ireland's former Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications Michael Lowry significant sums of money and, in exchange, Lowry gave O'Brien, "substantive information (that was) of significant value and assistance" to his Esat Digifone company securing Ireland's second mobile licence ahead of rival bidders, in 1995.