A former public representative was tonight being questioned by gardaí in Cork after he allegedly tried to hire a hitman to murder three people involved in an investigation into his financial affairs.

The man was arrested at his home outside Cork city this morning on suspicion of conspiracy to murder the three people. Detectives arrested him under section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act which allows gardaí to detain suspects for up to seven days.

The man was brought to Gurranebraher Garda station where he was questioned about an alleged plot to murder a garda, a Revenue official and an accountant who had all been involved in a criminal investigation into the man’s business affairs.

It is understood the conspiracy came to light about three months ago when the businessman approached an individual in Cork city inquiring about hiring a hitman to murder the three people.

The individual who was approached is understood to have alerted gardaí and an operation was put in place which resulted in the businessman meeting an undercover officer posing as a hitman and handing over a sizeable quantity of cash to have the people killed.

It is understood gardaí had alerted the intended targets of the suspected conspiracy but when they learned of the seriousness of the man’s plan, they moved yesterday morning and arrested him.

Gardaí had previously arrested the man in 2011 when he was working as a financial adviser. On that occasion, the man was questioned about alleged offences under the Criminal Justice Fraud and Theft Act but he was later released without charge.