HomeNews“This may never have happened if…” — A h:ɑunting moment at the...
“This may never have happened if…” — A h:ɑunting moment at the centre of the Noah Donohoe inquest, as newly aired CCTV fσσtage raises troubling questions, watched in silence by those in court — including his mother, Fiona — while a police officer’s testimony adds to the mystery… 😞
Noah Donohoe inquest RECAP as schoolboy ‘missed’ in initial CCTV search
Week three of the inquest has now concluded
Noah Donohoe was found dead in a storm drain in North Belfast in 2020. His mother Fiona Donohoe has led a high-profile campaign for answers.
The inquest into the death of Noah Donohoe heard on Thursday that the schoolboy’s appearance on a leisure centre’s CCTV footage appeared to have been “missed” by police in the first “critical” 24 hours after he went missing.
Noah, a pupil of St Malachy’s College, was 14 when he was found dead in a storm drain in north Belfast in June 2020, six days after leaving home on his bike to meet two friends in the Cavehill area of the city.
A post-mortem examination found the cause of death was drowning. The inquest, which is being heard with a jury, finishes its third week of hearings on Thursday.
A detective constable, who was on duty the day after Noah went missing, told Belfast Coroner’s Court that on Monday June 22, she was tasked with investigating the disappearance of Noah and also communicating with his mum Fiona.
Ms Donohoe’s counsel, Brenda Campbell KC, ran through police logs in relation to when and where CCTV footage was checked in the hours after the teenager went missing.
Ms Campbell said that on the day after he went missing, at 3.15pm, the police log stated that “CCTV was also checked (at) the Grove leisure centre and the funeral directors facing it with negative results”.
She asked the constable if this meant that officers had checked the Grove leisure centre footage and did not see Noah on it, to which the constable agreed.
“But Noah was on that footage,” Ms Campbell said.
When the CCTV footage from leisure centre on Shore Road was played in court, Ms Campbell pointed out that the footage is around 43 minutes behind the real time, adding that it would be “basic policing” to check whether the systems were operating in real-time.
She said this meant that events from around 6pm can be viewed on the Grove leisure centre CCTV at 5.17pm.
“If an officer or officers on CCTV duty checked the camera time for 6pm rather than the real time, they are looking at a period 40 minutes after Noah has passed. And so he’s never going to be on it,” she said.
The constable said she was not tasked with checking CCTV footage and so could not comment on what other officers checked or what inquiries they made.
Ms Campbell said it appears Noah “may have been missed on that Grove footage” because “he was on it at 6.01pm when we were told it was a ‘negative result’”.
The constable replied “yes”.
Ms Campbell then said that an hour and a half later, a police log states that the Grove leisure centre footage was “poor” and there was a “30-minute time difference” on it.
At 6.41pm, a police log entry stated: “Enquiries conducted at Grove leisure centre, no CCTV available at this time, no staff present to operate it.”
Ms Campbell suggested there was a “grey area here” for police on whether the Grove leisure centre footage was negative or whether the camera times were not right.
She asked Ms Keatley at what “level of urgency” were officers pursuing CCTV footage in relation to Noah’s disappearance.
“My understanding was that everyone was very invested in this investigation, but I can’t speak for crews I didn’t see or wasn’t with,” the constable said.
Week three of the inquest has now concluded. It will continue at 10am on Monday, February 16.
Jane Corscadden
Week three concludes
Week three of the inquest has now concluded. It will resume at 10am on Monday, February 16.
Jane Corscadden
Leisure centre CCTV footage “importance” changed as last sighting later in timeline
On a separate PSNI sheet for tracking the CCTV trawl, shown at the inquest, Ms Campbell noted that the footage labelled as “Grove Wellbeing” is dated as being recovered on Friday June 26 2020.
Counsel for the PSNI, Donal Lunny KC, said the “hooks of time” in tracing Noah’s whereabouts on Monday were the sighting of Noah’s bike at 7pm, confirming the discovery of Noah’s bike at around 9pm, and retrieving CCTV footage from Northwood Road, where Noah was last seen.
He said at this point, police were “beyond” CCTV footage of North Queen Street.
He suggested that the “importance” of the Grove leisure centre CCTV footage had “changed from Monday into Tuesday”, as his last sighting was now later in the timeline.
But he said it was still important to retrieve as part of the investigation, for example in helping to determine whether Noah had a possible head injury after an earlier fall from his bike.
He also suggested that it was standard procedure to only do a formal time check when CCTV is being seized, to which Ms Keatley agreed.
Ms Campbell asked Ms Keatley did this mean that “in the middle of a high-risk missing person that you turn a blind eye to real time” and said if they did not cross-check the timestamp, the footage could be “minutes or hours out” and have “no relevance at all” to the case.
Ms Keatley said: “I would at least ask someone ‘is there any time difference in your footage’ and make an inquiry with someone.”
Lauren Harte
“Basic policing” to check if CCTV operating in real-time
The CCTV footage from the Grove leisure centre on Shore Road was then played in court.
Ms Campbell pointed out that the camera footage is around 43 minutes behind the real time, and that it would be “basic policing” to check whether CCTV systems were operating in real-time.
She said this meant that events from around 6pm can be viewed on the Grove leisure centre CCTV at 5.17pm.
“If an officer or officers on CCTV duty checked the camera time for 6pm rather than the real time, they are looking at a period 40 minutes after Noah has passed. And so he’s never going to be on it,” she said.
The constable said she was not tasked with checking CCTV footage and so could not comment on what other officers checked or what inquiries they made.
Ms Campbell said it appears Noah “may have been missed on that Grove footage” because “he was on it at 6.01pm when we were told it was a ‘negative result’”.
The constable replied “yes”.
Ms Campbell then said that an hour and a half later, a police log states that the Grove leisure centre footage was “poor” and there was a “30-minute time difference” on it.
At 6.41pm, a police log entry stated: “Enquiries conducted at Grove leisure centre, no CCTV available at this time, no staff present to operate it.”
Ms Campbell suggested there was a “grey area here” for police on whether the Grove leisure centre footage was negative or whether the camera times were not right.
She asked Ms Keatley at what “level of urgency” were officers pursuing CCTV footage in relation to Noah’s disappearance.
“My understanding was that everyone was very invested in this investigation, but I can’t speak for crews I didn’t see or wasn’t with,” the constable said.
KEY EVENT
Noah ‘missed’ in initial search of CCTV footage
Noah Donohoe’s appearance on a leisure centre’s CCTV footage appeared to have been “missed” by police in the first “critical” 24 hours after he went missing.
A detective constable, who was on duty the day after Noah went missing, said that on Monday June 22, she was tasked with investigating the disappearance of Noah and also communicating with his mum Fiona.
Ms Donohoe’s counsel, Brenda Campbell KC, ran through police logs in relation to when and where CCTV footage was checked in the hours after the teenager went missing.
Ms Campbell said that on the day after he went missing, at 3.15pm, the police log stated that “CCTV was also checked (at) the Grove leisure centre and the funeral directors facing it with negative results”.
She asked the constable if this meant that officers had checked the Grove leisure centre footage and did not see Noah on it, to which the constable agreed.
“But Noah was on that footage,” Ms Campbell said.
Lauren Harte
CCTV footage of Noah cycling
The jury is been shown CCTV footage of Noah on his bike cycling through parts of north Belfast.
Lauren Harte
Officer informed Noah’s mum about his clothes being found
The detective constable also recalled telling Noah’s mother Fiona that his clothes had been found.
But when asked by Brenda Campbell KC, who is acting on behalf of Fiona Donohoe, if she had informed that Noah had been naked, she said this was not the case.
“I think she is remembering me saying his clothes had been found, which would mean he would have been naked,” she added.
Lauren Harte
Officer “totally determined” to find Noah
A detective constable has resumed her evidence on Thursday morning about notes she had recorded after reviewing the OEL logs.
Recalling her early dealings with Noah’s mother, she agreed that she felt invested after being put on the missing person investigation on Monday, June 22.
Having been briefed the next day that Noah was still missing, she asked to stay on the investigation as she was “totally determined” to get a result – finding Noah.
Lauren Harte
Hearing due to begin shortly
Thursday’s inquest hearing is due to get underway shortly at Belfast Coroner’s Court.
It will hear more about the circumstances surrounding the death of Belfast schoolboy Noah Donohoe, who was 14 when he was found dead in a storm drain in 2020.
Lauren Harte
Officer on duty day after Noah went missing gives evidence
On Wednesday afternoon, a detective constable who was on duty the day after Noah went missing started giving evidence to the inquest.
The officer said she had sent a text message to Noah’s phone to reassure him he was not in trouble while the search for him continued.
She later accompanied another officer who took possession of the mobile after it had been found by a member of the public at a park in north Belfast.
She said when they had the phone it received a call from Noah’s mother Fiona.
She said: “I answered the phone as I had been speaking with Noah’s mum, Fiona, throughout the day, and I thought it was best she immediately knew the phone was in police possession and explained the circumstances of it being located to her.”
Lauren Harte
Thank you for joining our live blog
We will bring you the latest updates from the final day of the third week of the inquest into Noah Donohoe’s death
