A detective garda has denied encouraging Schull shopkeeper Marie Farrell to claim she saw Ian Bailey near the Sophie Toscan du Plantier murder scene.

Jim Fitzgerald is giving evidence at Ian Bailey's High Court action for alleged wrongful arrest on suspicion of killing the French film producer at her west Cork holiday home in December 1996.

Numerous allegations have been made against Det Garda Jim Fitzgerald in Ian Bailey's High Court action for damages - including claims he gave drugs to a former British soldier to get close to Ian Bailey.

Schull shop keeper Marie Farrell spent days in the witness box alleging that the detective had coached her to make false statements about seeing Mr Bailey at a bridge near Sophie Toscan du Plantier's house on the morning of her murder in December 1996.

She said she'd almost daily contact with Detective Fitzgerald and claims on one occasion he stripped naked and asked her for sex – allegations he's expected to strenously deny in his evidence.

So far he's been questioned by barrister Paul O'Higgins for the state about his first encounter with Ms Farrell in late January 1997 – after she'd phoned gardai with information using the pseudonym Fiona.

He denies gardaí told her at that meeting that they knew Ian Bailey was the killer but needed her help to place him out of his house on the morning in question.

He has told the jury there was no agenda and it was Marie Farell who volunteered information about the journalist.

He said she didn't want to make a statement because she wasn't supposed to have been out on the night of the murder.