A LAWYER for Noah Donohoe’s mother has appealed to Belfast businesses to check CCTV in relation to a possible assault on the schoolboy.
Niall Murphy said they were aware there is a line of inquiry “in respect of statements received by police that Noah may have been assaulted as he cycled through the city centre”.
“We have reason to believe that there is particular and specifc knowledge of this assault in the homeless community and with those struggling with addiction issues in the city centre and also people who may have been resident at the Queen’s Quarter housing association in University Street.”
He urged businesses in the Royal Avenue/NorthStreet area to check CCTV from the evening of June 21 last year when the 14-year-old went missing.
Noah’s body was recovered from a storm drain in north Belfast around a week later.
The lawyer was speaking during a preliminary hearing ahead of a full inquest set to take place next January.
Mr Murphy also told Belfast Coroner’s Court that Noah’s mother Fiona wished to disassociate herself from a book about his disappearance.
Coroner Joe McCrisken revealed he has referred the publication to Attorney General Brenda King.