TOM GILMARTIN, WHO was a key witness in the controversial Mahon Tribunal, died today.

The former property developer, who was in his late 70s,  had been ill for a period of time and passed away at Cork University Hospital this morning.

The Sligo businessman became one of the central witnesses in the tribunal after he said he gave a cheque for IR£50,000 to former Fianna Fáil TD Pádraig Flynn during a period when he was trying to develop a shopping centre in west Dublin.

In a Late Late Show interview, Flynn’s denial angered Gilmartin to such an extent that he reversed his decision not to cooperate with the tribunal. In his evidence to the tribunal, he said Flynn had tried to get him to lie and change his version of events.

He also said that former minister Ray McSharry had brought him to meet a number of cabinet members including Bertie Ahern, though Mac Sharry and the former Taoiseach deny this.

Gilmartin is survived by his wife Vera and four children.

Read: Pee Flynn’s Late Late interview was “underhand” says Gilmartin’s son>