Developer 'naive on £5,000 gift'

Kevin Green denies the charge of corruption

A property developer told a jury he was "naive" to leave £5,000 in cash for a council's top official before they were due to discuss a planning issue.

Multi-millionaire Kevin Green, 43, of Burry Port, said the envelope full of £20 notes was not a bribe but a donation to the local swimming pool.

He said with hindsight he could see how Carmarthenshire Council chief executive Mark James misunderstood his intention.

Mr Green denies corruption. The case continues at Carmarthen Crown Court.

He told the jury that on 2 September last year he went to county hall to finalise arrangements for a meeting with Mr James the following week, where they were to discuss land he part-owned at Travellers Rest.

He said he handed over the envelope, marked strictly private and confidential and containing nothing but the money, to Mr James' personal assistant Liz Thomas.

She later opened the envelope and when Mr James returned to his office he asked her to call the police.

Mr Green was arrested later that day.

If I was to bribe the chief executive - I'm not stupid - I know where he lives - I would have gone to his home Kevin Green

Asked by his barrister Patrick Harrington QC whether the money was meant as bribe Mr Green replied: "No".

Asked what the £5,000 was for, he said: "A gift for the pool."

He told the court: "I made a mistake - I should've left a note."

The court heard that since 2000 Mr Green had built up a multimillion-pound property empire in Carmarthenshire after quitting as a dairy farmer.

He owned properties in Llanelli, Carmarthen, Kidwelly and travelled the world giving talks on property investment.

Chief executive Mark James told his assistant to call the police

He said he and his wife had separated and that had had an effect on their three young children.

To help them get their confidence back he took them for swimming lessons at Carmarthen Leisure Centre and he felt "indebted to the pool".

He said he had been thinking about making a donation towards its refurbishment for some time and as he was going to county hall that day he made the "spontaneous" decision to leave the money for Mr James.

Geraint Walters QC, prosecuting, asked him whether he accepted that leaving the money without any covering note or explanation was likely to give rise to suspicion.

Mr Green said his actions had been "naive".

When challenged that the money was meant as a bribe Mr Green replied: "If I was to bribe the chief executive - I'm not stupid - I know where he lives - I would have gone to his home".