Businessman Jim Kennedy has been arrested in Dublin by officers from the Criminal Assets Bureau.
Mr Kennedy was arrested on Arran Quay at 4.15pm this afternoon and taken to Irishtown Garda Station.
He is being questioned about alleged offences under the Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889 as amended by the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1916 as amended by the Ethics in Public Office Act of 1995. This is namely the payment of bribes to public officials.
He has been arrested as part of a criminal investigation by the CAB, which has been investigating corrupt payments to public officials.
Former Government Press Secretary Frank Dunlop has already been convicted and jailed as part of the investigation.
The CAB has been seeking to interview the amusement arcade owner for the past seven years over the rezoning of this land at Carrickmines in south Dublin in 1997.
The land is owned by a company called Jackson Way and Mr Kennedy is alleged to be joint owner.
It is claimed that Jackson Way were corruptly enriched when the land's worth increased by €53m as a result of the bribery.
Mr Kennedy, who has been living in the Isle of Man and Gibraltar for a number of years, refused to attend the Mahon Tribunal and reportedly refused any interviews with gardaí.
He is been detained under Section Four of the Criminal Justice Act and can be questioned for up to 24 hours.
This criminal investigation is separate from civil proceedings that are currently under way in the High Court.
