Sensitive material on the Noah Donohoe case is being leaked on social media by a police source, a coroner’s court has heard.
A barrister for the Donohoe family made the claim during a pre-inquest hearing on Thursday.
In response, a representative of the PSNI said the organisation was not aware of any unauthorised leak of police material related to the case.
Brenda Campbell QC, on behalf of the family, said the allegation was at the centre of the latest in a series of complaints made to the Police Ombudsman by Noah’s mother Fiona.
“One of the concerns in this document is that from a source that we say can only be a police source, sensitive material is being leaked to the public on social media,” she told coroner Mr Justice Michael Humphreys.
Responding to the claim, Mr Justice Humphreys said: “That would be a matter obviously of very grave concern if that’s correct and I fully understand why those instructing you will be writing in the terms that they have done in relation to the potential leaking of information from that source.”
Ms Campbell outlined the claim in open court in advance of a hearing to consider a PSNI application to withhold certain information from November’s inquest into Noah’s death in 2020.
Asked by the coroner to explain the relevance of the allegation to the public interest immunity (PII) hearing, Ms Campbell said she raised it as a “juxtaposition”, to contrast the PSNI’s court bid to withhold information with the alleged unauthorised leaking of material that had not even been disclosed to the Donohoe family.
Donal Lunny QC, representing the PSNI, said the material allegedly leaked on Twitter did not include any of the sensitive material that was the subject of the PSNI’s PII application.
“I consider myself obliged to indicate what my instructions are in relation to that complaint, because it’s been raised, and they are, very briefly, that the PSNI are not aware of any leaks or any unauthorised disclosure of any undisclosed material,” he said.
The barrister highlighted that police officers were obliged to follow the PSNI’s code of ethics that prohibited such behaviour.
“If any officer was judged to be in breach of that code then that’s a matter that will be subject to investigation and, if appropriate, misconduct proceedings and I can indicate that the professional standards department in the police is not aware of any complaint,” he said.
Mr Lunny said, as it stood, the complaint remained an issue for the Police Ombudsman to deal with.
Foul play ruled out
Noah (14), a pupil at St Malachy’s College in Belfast, was found dead in a storm drain in the north of the city in June 2020, six days after going missing.
He disappeared while cycling from his home in south Belfast to meet friends across the city.
Police have ruled out foul play.
Noah’s mother is hoping for answers to some of the questions surrounding her son’s disappearance and death through the inquest process. She has been campaigning for the police files to be released in full and has gained significant public backing.
A petition opposing the PII bid has gained more than 300,000 signatures, while supporters of the Donohoe family staged a protest in Belfast city centre last month.
To make a PII application to the coroner, the PSNI first required the sign off of a Government minister. Northern Ireland Secretary Shailesh Vara signed the document in July in a move that drew criticism from those opposing the PII bid.
A decision on whether to withhold police material from the inquest will be made with absolute independence and integrity, Mr Justice Humphreys said. He said he is aware of the level of controversy generated by the PII application.
The closed PII hearing was held in Belfast on Thursday, with Mr Justice Humphreys pledging to deliver a ruling within seven days. — PA