THE PROBE INTO the Rio Olympics ticketing controversy cost the State over  €312,765.

The non-statutory inquiry carried out by Judge Carroll Moran sought to establish the practice of ticket distribution adopted by the Olympic Council of Ireland for the Rio Olympics.

It also investigated ticket practices for the London 2012 Olympics, as well as the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014.

The inquiry was launched after the former head of the Olympic Council of Ireland, Pat Hickey, was arrested in Rio de Janeiro after it was alleged he was involved in a ticket-touting operation.

Hickey’s court case was later suspended. He denied any wrongdoing.

While the court case was dropped, the Moran inquiry’s detailed report said the probe was limited by a lack of communication from some Brazilian and international stakeholders.

Former Olympic Council of Ireland chief executive Pat Hickey; Pro10 Sports Management, which was the ticket re-seller for the OCI; ticket re-seller THG, and the International Olympic Committee all came in for criticism from Judge Moran for not cooperating with the investigation.

In his 226-page report Judge Moran wrote that his investigation “was barred direct access to the details of ticketing, some or all of which were within the knowledge of Pro10, THG and [Rio local organising committee] ROCOGT”.

“The provenance and destination of each ticket and the consideration given for them
at each step in their journey were never revealed to the Inquiry.

A general history was given to the Inquiry by some of the participants but, inevitably, not in the necessary detail. This has substantially undermined the ability of the Inquiry to acquire a comprehensive understanding of the facts.

In a statement, Pat Hickey said that the report contained “significant inaccuracies”.

Sports Minister Shane Ross said Moran completed and published his report in June 2017, which can be considered the completion date of his inquiry.

“The total cost of the Moran Inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the receipt, distribution and sale of tickets for the Rio Olympic Games and ancillary matters amounted to €312,765. There are no outstanding amounts to be paid,” he added.