Police in Rio investigating the alleged mis-selling of Rio 2016 tickets have said they have uncovered email contact between Pat Hickey and the THG company as recently as 3 August, discussing the sale of Olympic tickets.
They said the Olympic Council of Ireland had facilitated the transfer of tickets to THG.
In one released email Mr Hickey, who has temporarily stepped aside as OCI president, spoke of an apparent surplus of tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies, telling THG owner Marcus Evans he could use them all if he wished.
Mr Evans replied " ... I am afraid I have more than I need as well so all we can do is put back on portal for hopeful resell."
The police also said emails found by them dated back to 2010 - although for a period of time THG was the official OCI reseller.
Aloysio Falcao, one of the lead investigators in the case, said that after his arrest and questioning, Mr Hickey told investigators that the first time he met Mr Evans was during the Olympic Games in London in 2012.
However, he said that they had uncovered emails between Mr Hickey and Mr Evans, dating as far back as 2010.
Police also said Mr Hickey told them that the only contact he had with Mr Evans since the arrest of THG’s Kevin Mallon on 5 August was to speak to him about the fact that his name was being dirtied in Brazil.
However, according to police there were several communications between both men since the arrest, including several "call me" text messages.
Yesterday evening OCI official Dermot Henihan arrived to speak with detectives, surrounded by the international media.
He gave a statement to police who said they now no longer viewed him as a suspect.
Two other officials, Kevin Kilty and Stephen Martin, will meet police tomorrow.
All three have had their passports confiscated, but police are now asking a judge to return Mr Henihan's.
There is no suggestion of any impropriety by the men.
Mr Hickey remains in custody in a Rio prison awaiting a court appearance on the allegations being made by investigators - but it was confirmed yesterday 800 cases are waiting to be heard as the courts were in recess during the Olympics and his case is just one of them.
The situation is the same with Mr Mallon, who remains in custody with Mr Hickey awaiting a hearing.
Minister for Sport Shane Ross has said the Government respects the Brazilian authorities but they are concerned that Irish citizens are in this situation.
The minister said the Government would co-operate with the Brazilian police investigation if a request was made through the proper channels.
He said the Department of Foreign Affairs was seeking clarification on a statement by police in Rio that they wanted to speak to the "Minister for Ireland."
Howlin expresses concern over inquiry
Labour leader Brendan Howlin said he has a number of concerns over the non-statutory inquiry in the Olympic ticket controversy.
He said he did not know specifically what the scope of the inquiry will be and until that was known it was very hard to have a view on it, but what was meant to be a short 12 week scoping exercise is now expanding.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, he also said he did not believe proposed inquiry will work because the OCI is debarred from cooperating with such an inquiry unless it is "statutory-based".
"Bluntly, the notion of setting out a non-statutory inquiry when all the information, the potential documentation or data electronically stored is not within the possession or procurement of the State or a State agency, I think, is heading down a road that is fraught."
Mr Howlin said it was incumbent on anyone who can help to do so.
He added that most people find what is unfolding in Rio "a bit jarring" and the incarceration of Mr Hickey is "not the way we do business in this country."
Mr Howlin said we have to hold onto our principle of the presumption of innocence until such time as there is a finding in relation to these matters.
