Barrister seeks answers from PSNI over image ‘found on Noah Donohoe’s phone’

A photograph which appears to amusement a manus whitethorn person been taken connected Noah Donohoe’s mobile telephone successful the hours aft the teen went missing successful Belfast, a tribunal has heard.

A barrister for Noah’s parent Fiona Donohoe told an inquest proceeding that an adept had discovered the representation and it raised the imaginable that the telephone had been successful the possession of idiosyncratic else.

Brenda Campbell KC said the contented was of specified value that she wanted “urgent responses” from the PSNI connected whether it agreed that the photograph had been taken connected the evening of Noah’s disappearance and if the unit had erstwhile cognition of the image.

Noah, 14, was recovered dormant successful a tempest drain successful the metropolis successful June 2020 – six days aft helium went missing arsenic helium cycled to conscionable up with friends.

His parent Fiona Donohoe is hoping to unafraid answers to immoderate of the questions surrounding the decease of her lad done the inquest process.

The inquest was primitively scheduled to instrumentality spot past twelvemonth but was past delayed aft a ruling that it should proceed with a jury, pursuing an exertion from Ms Donohoe.

The archetypal coroner, Joe McCrisken, has since recused himself from the case, and Wednesday’s proceeding was the archetypal successful the long-running proceedings since a caller coroner, Mr Justice Rooney, was appointed.

Ms Donohoe was successful attendance for the latest proceeding astatine the Royal Courts of Justice successful Belfast.

The tribunal was told that a provisional day for the inquest has been acceptable for February 3 adjacent year. It has antecedently been stated the proceedings could past up to six weeks.

During the lengthy reappraisal hearing, counsel for the coroner Peter Coll KC updated the tribunal connected a fig of issues relating to the disclosure process and mentation of adept reports up of the afloat inquest.

Ms Campbell, representing Ms Donohoe, urged the tribunal to clasp regular reviews of the case.

Regarding disclosure of information, she told the tribunal that the next-of-kin was inactive waiting to entree “call information records” from the PSNI from Noah’s telephone truthful that their adept tin implicit a report.

However, she said that during a reappraisal of a download of worldly from the phone, the adept had identified a photograph of what “appears to beryllium a thenar oregon a information of a hand”.

She said: “A benignant of photograph that mightiness inadvertently beryllium taken by a telephone that has been picked up oregon held successful a hand.

“The value of it is that the adept instructs it was taken astatine 10 to 7 connected the evening of Noah’s disappearance.

(The issue) is of specified value that we bring it straight to the attraction of the tribunal and we inquire for urgent responses successful narration to it

Brenda Campbell KC

“We person asked the adept to cheque and to treble cheque that time. But if it was taken astatine 18:50, that raises the imaginable that Noah’s telephone was successful someone’s manus astatine that time.

“Based connected what we cognize of Noah’s movements and his disappearance astir 40 minutes antecedently successful the country of Northwood Crescent, a beardown inference would beryllium that it wasn’t Noah’s hand. It was not Noah.”

The barrister said she wanted to rise a fig of questions for the PSNI astir the photograph.

She said: “What we inquire is does the PSNI hold that determination is simply a photograph connected Noah’s telephone that was taken astatine 18:50 connected 21st June 2020?

“And if so, did they cognize astir it and for however agelong person they known astir it? And what was done astir it?

“And who was successful possession of Noah’s telephone astatine that clip and connected that date?

“If the reply is no, they didn’t cognize astir it, past wherefore not?”

Ms Campbell continued: “It is of specified value that we bring it straight to the attraction of the tribunal and we inquire for urgent responses successful narration to it.”

Representing the PSNI, barrister Donal Lunny KC said determination was rather a batch of accusation related to telecommunications which needed to beryllium assessed for relevancy and imaginable redactions.

He said helium had received submissions from Ms Campbell astir the representation aft adjacent of concern the erstwhile evening.

He said: “I person had precise constricted clip successful which to effort to question instructions.

“I evidently volition and we volition pass with the next-of-kin and the coroner’s work astir that issue.”

The contented of Noah's disappearance and decease has been blurred by rumour and suspicion. Some of that suspicion focuses connected drugs

Brenda Campbell KC

Ms Campbell besides raised the contented of entree to samples which would let toxicology reports to beryllium carried out.

She said: “The contented of Noah’s disappearance and decease has been blurred by rumour and suspicion. Some of that suspicion focuses connected drugs.

“It is simply a substance which causes Noah’s parent a large grade of concern.

“What she is acrophobic astir is getting arsenic galore answers arsenic possible, nary substance however achy those answers are.

“As agelong arsenic she has answers past that provides immoderate comfort.

“If the answers service lone to enactment issues to bed, past they volition person served a precise important process arsenic acold arsenic knowing what happened to Noah.”

Ms Campbell added that the February 2025 day for the afloat inquest was “not fixed successful stone”.

She said: “It has been repeated by maine connected behalf of Fiona Donohoe connected galore occasions, what she is acrophobic astir is having a afloat and fearless inquest erstwhile it is ready.

“There is simply a important magnitude of enactment to beryllium done earlier it is ready.”

The coroner said helium would reappraisal the lawsuit again connected November 14.