Northern Ireland

Teenager charged with drill attack to appear in court

Brenda McLaughlin (38) suffered a severe head injury
Brenda McLaughlin (38) suffered a severe head injury Brenda McLaughlin (38) suffered a severe head injury

A TEENAGER is to appear in court today following an attack on a woman with a cordless drill in Co Tyrone.

Brenda McLaughlin (38) sustained a severe head injury in the assault in the Railway Street area of Strabane in the early hours of Saturday.

She is being treated in the critical care unit of Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry where her condition was described as stable yesterday evening.

A 17-year-old has been charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent, possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and theft.

He is due to appear at Omagh Magistrates Court today.

Police said before the teenager was charged that one line of enquiry was that it was a homophobic attack.

PSNI Detective Sergeant Brian Reid said: "We are exploring a possible homophobic motive for the crime and we are appealing for witnesses to get in touch with us.

"We would like to hear from anyone who may have seen a male carrying a drill in the area at around the time of the assault and we would especially like to speak to anyone who may have captured footage, either on mobile phone or dashcam."

He added: “This was a brutal attack and the injuries sustained by the victim are extremely grave."

The incident took place at around 2am on Saturday in Railway Street, a main street in Strabane.

It is believed the victim was making her way home from a night out when she attacked.

Corey French, who described himself as a family friend, said he spoke to the woman at local nightclub Ruby's hours earlier.

"She was (having) good craic, we were having a laugh, chatting away," Mr French said.

He described Ms McLaughlin as someone with a "complete and utter heart of gold".

The attack has shocked the local community and has been widely condemned.

SDLP MLA Daniel McCrossan said he was "absolutely horrified" by the assault.

"This kind of sickening behaviour has no place in society," he said.

Sinn Féin MLA Michaela Boyle said that local people are "numb with shock" at the horrific nature of the attack

“My hope is that she can pull through from the life-threatening injuries which she has sustained," she said.

“There is no place for hate crime of any kind in our society and if this report is true then this barbaric attack is all the more reprehensible."