Police ‘confident’ progress being made in Noah Donohoe investigation

By Rebecca Black, PA

PSNI chief constable Simon Byrne has said police are confident that progress is being made in the investigation into the death of schoolboy Noah Donohoe.

The 14-year-old was found dead in a storm drain in north Belfast last June, six days after he went missing.

A pre-inquest hearing at Belfast Coroner’s Court on Wednesday heard that a fresh claim that he had been abducted and murdered was being investigated by the PSNI.

A Sunday newspaper reported the claim that a prisoner had come forward alleging his cellmate had confessed the murder to him.

Mr Byrne told the Northern Ireland Policing Board on Thursday that he recognised the anguish that the teenager’s mother Fiona Donohoe was going through.

“We continue to support the coroner in that investigation and recognise the anguish that Fiona is going through,” he said.

“I met her myself a few months ago to listen to some of her concerns and we’re keen to remedy any of the issues that she is raising in gaps in the inquiry, but we’re confident that we are making progress in the investigation.”