Colin Armstrong (39) has made an application to the High Court in Belfast for leave to apply for judicial review after the agency published allegations on its website he had links to drug dealing and loyalist paramilitaries.

After hearing arguments from the legal teams representing both sides yesterday, Mr Justice Gillen said he would reveal whether the application was successful "in the next few days".

The Glenavy businessman had assets worth around £5m frozen by the agency in March 2005 on grounds there were suspicions he made his fortune through drug trafficking. The claims, posted on the agency's website, have been strongly denied by him.

The father-of-three launched the legal bid under the grounds the agency's policy is in breach of his right to a fair trial under the Human Rights Act. He also believes the policy is in breach of his right to life as he received death threats.

During yesterday's hearing, the court was told by Mr Armstrong's barrister that the allegations of drug dealing were based on "intelligence information provided to the agency by the PSNI".

He said the claims posted on the website breached Mr Armstrong's human rights and infringed his right to privacy.

The court heard that a court-appointed Interim Receiver probed the claims and found no evidence to support them.

A barrister for the agency defended the website allegations, saying it was the director's statutory function to "exercise his powers in the best way he can to reduce crime".

He also revealed part of the agency case against Mr Armstrong is that his fingerprints were found in a warehouse in Belgium which the police believe was a property linked to the drugs trafficking operation.

Mr Armstrong refutes the claims he says ruined his life.