Mohan Sinha
12 Oct 2025, 18:29 GMT+10
DUBLIN, Ireland: Former Fianna Fáil presidential candidate Jim Gavin has repaid 3,300 euros that he owed to a former tenant, Niall Donald, according to a source close to Donald.
As reported by the Irish Examiner, Gavin withdrew suddenly from the presidential race after claims emerged that he owed Donald more than 3,000 euros in connection with a rental arrangement that had not been correctly registered.
Donald, who co-hosts the Crime World podcast with journalist Nicola Tallant, discussed the controversy on Wednesday's episode.
In the podcast, released earlier that day, Donald described the matter as "a complicated story in one way, but simple in another." He explained that he began renting an apartment in Smithfield, Dublin, with a friend in 2007, paying rent through a standing order.
Donald said he had "very little dealings" with Gavin at the time and did not know about his sporting background. When his friend later moved out, his partner moved in.
"Whatever way the standing orders were changed, I had two standing orders," he said. "There was an increase in the rent, and instead of changing my standing order, I just added another one."
Donald continued living in the apartment until 2009. As reported by the Irish Examiner, he and his partner were expecting a baby when they moved out.
In 2010, Donald hired a solicitor to write to Gavin demanding repayment of the overpaid rent and warning of possible legal action.
Since he did not have Gavin's home address, Donald said he sent the letter to both the apartment and to Gavin's workplace at the Air Corps base in Baldonnel, Co. Dublin. He also hand-delivered a copy to Gavin's parents' home, leaving it in an envelope marked "private and confidential."
"I said, ‘I'm really sorry to call at your house. I'm a former tenant of Jim's. I'm just looking to get a letter to him.' They were really, really nice," Donald recalled.
However, later that night, after midnight, Gavin called him, reportedly angry about the visit to his parents' home.
Donald said Gavin was "really, really irate" during the phone call.
The repayment of the 3,300 euros ends the long-running dispute that resurfaced during Gavin's short-lived presidential campaign.
Get a daily dose of Denmark Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Denmark Sun.
More InformationDUBLIN, Ireland: Former Fianna Fáil presidential candidate Jim Gavin has repaid 3,300 euros that he owed to a former tenant, Niall...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Catherine Connolly has confirmed that she used part of her Parliamentary Activities Allowance (PAA) to pay for her...
DUBLIN, Ireland: The average residential property sold in Ireland in 2025 cost 426,000 euros — roughly eight times the average annual...
BENGALURU/HYDERABAD, India: Tighter U.S. immigration policies, particularly those targeting the H-1B skilled-worker visa, are reshaping...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland's Housing Minister James Browne has announced what he called a Government war on dereliction, introducing...
PARIS, France: President Emmanuel Macron's office announced on October 6 that Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu had tendered his resignation,...
(Photo credit: Andrew Nelles-Imagn Images) Norway's Solveig Lovseth made the most of her first Ironman World Championship race, rallying...
(Photo credit: Shawn Dowd/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK) Team Falcons and Team Vitality will meet in the grand...
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has warned that Brussels is rapidly drifting toward a direct confrontation with Russia Hungarian...
by Xinhua writers Lu Youyi, Hu Xu and Li Qianwei CHENGDU, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- In the heart of Sichuan, an inland province in southwest...
Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], October 11 (ANI): The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association delegation on Saturday met Advisor...
Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], October 11 (ANI): China's sweeping infrastructure expansion, militarisation, and resource extraction...
