Three in court on rioting charges

30 July 2011 Last updated at 16:08 GMT The three appeared over rioting in Ardoyne and east Belfast Three alleged rioters, including a 15-year-old boy, have been released on bail after appearing in court in Belfast.

Two of those who appeared on Saturday were accused of involvement in rioting in the Ardoyne area on 12 July.

The teenager was allegedly involved in trouble at the east Belfast interface.

Police have now arrested 27 people for involvement in the Ardoyne trouble. Officers came under attack from people throwing missiles following a contentious parade in the area.

The court heard that Joseph Rainey, 18, from Flax Street in Belfast admitted throwing missiles at police lines on two occasions in Ardoyne and had accepted that "his behaviour had been disgraceful".

District judge Amanda Henderson said she was only granting bail because of the accused's limited record and acceptance of guilt during interviews.

Ronan Kerr

Objecting to bail for the 15-year-old, who cannot be named because of his age, a detective constable revealed that when told to sign paperwork, he had replied: "Do you want me to sign this as Ronan Kerr?"

She also said that he had been involved in rioting at the same time last year and had also been questioned about other incidents in recent months.

The detective said the public had a right to be protected from the teen.

The judge said she would grant bail, but only because of his age and because an address in County Down had been put forward for the boy to go to live with his grandmother.

The teenager was ordered to be electronically tagged, observe a nightime curfew and not to wear a hoodie or baseball cap or other clothing that could conceal his identity.

The court also heard that Martin Brannigan, 25, from Monagh Drive in west Belfast had accepted getting a bus from his house to north Belfast to watch the riot.

However, he allegedly became involved and was identified on CCTV throwing masonry at police.

All three who appeared in court were also ordered to stay 500 metres away from any parade.

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Man arrested following car crash

30 July 2011 Last updated at 11:10 GMT The crash happened in the early hours of Saturday morning A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and driving whilst unfit after a car crash in County Armagh on Saturday.

The crash happened at Drumintee Road in Meigh in the early hours of the morning.

A woman was taken to hospital for treatment for serious leg injuries.

Two other men and a woman was also hospitalised. Their injuries are not believed to be serious.

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SF has biggest income of parties

28 July 2011 Last updated at 15:39 GMT Sinn Fein continued to have the largest income of all the main parties in Northern Ireland last year - taking in more than ?1.2m.

The party spent less than it took in and remains in the black by ?76,960.

The figures, published by the Electoral Commission, also reveal that the DUP and the SDLP are in the red.

The Ulster Unionists show a healthier balance than previous years with income of around ?440,000 and a balance sheet in the black by around ?40,000.

UUP treasurer Mark Cosgrove said he was delighted his party "continued to show a good set of financial figures and looked forward to maintaining these in the future".

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DUP: Income of ?268,456; spent ?335,678 - net loss of ?67,222

Sinn Fein: Income of ?1,289,335; spent ?1,212,375 - ?76,960 in the black.

UUP: Income of ?440,949; spent ?398,295 - ?42,654 in the black.

SDLP: Income of ?346,946; spent ?413,238 - net loss of ?66,292

Meanwhile, the SDLP is refusing to comment on whether or not some staff have been given notice.

The party's chief executive Michael Savage told the BBC that the SDLP did not comment on staffing matters.

He added the party's financial position was similar to other organisations across Europe especially on the back of election campaigns.

"I acknowledge the party has a deficit which we are addressing as an organisation and a plan is in place to deal with that," he said.

Accounts were also filed by the Conservative Party in Northern Ireland.

It took in ?408,127 and spent ?391,359 leaving it in the black by ?16,768.

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Fine for Facebook 'bullet' poster

29 July 2011 Last updated at 13:57 GMT Darryl O'Donnell said he had no regrets about what he posted A 31-year-old chef convicted of posting a menacing message about DUP MP Gregory Campbell on Facebook has been fined ?500 and given a suspended jail term.

Darryl O'Donnell a father of two from Belvedere Park, Londonderry, posted that Mr Campbell "should get a bullet in the head".

It followed comments attributed to Mr Campbell in June of last year about the Saville report into Bloody Sunday.

O'Donnell was given a five month jail sentence suspended for three years.

In his sentencing at Londonderry Magistrates Court, District Judge Barney McElholm said Mr Campbell was entitled to state his opinion whether or not people agreed with what he said.

The district judge said O'Donnell's comments were menacing and offensive and should not have been posted on Facebook.

He said O'Donnell who has 22 previous convictions, 11 of them for public order offences, did not come before the court with clean hands.

'Engage his brain'

Mr McElholm imposed another five month suspended sentence consecutively on O'Donnell plus a ?200 fine when he admitted committing disorderly behaviour at Guildhall Square on 19 May.

Mr McElholm said when Mr O'Donnell opened his mouth he did not seem to engage his brain first and said that only for the fact that he had recently got a job he would be going to jail.

East Londonderry MP Gregory Campbell was the subject of the comment

Following his Facebook sentencing O'Donnell said he was glad it was all over but added he had no regrets.

Commenting on the sentencing, Mr Campbell said: "I reported the comments to the police because of their menacing and threatening nature.

"Just as it is wrong to make such menacing comments against an individual using traditional communication tools it is equally wrong to make the comments through new media."

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Olympics-double dream

29 July 2011 Last updated at 05:19 GMT By Nikki Gregg BBC Sport Jason Smyth faces a tough heat in the 100 metres at the European Championships in Barcelona Comparisons to the fastest man in history aren't easily earned.

A matter of weeks after Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt dominated the opposition on his way to Olympic glory in Beijing, Jason Smyth became the star turn of the Paralympic sprint competition.

He proved himself to be a class apart as he won gold medals in the 100m and 200m, both in world record times.

"It seems so long ago now," he said.

"Also, how quickly the time has flown past. Here we are, a year away from London and, hopefully, I'll be in good shape to do something similar."

Jason is a visually impaired athlete. He has Sargardt's disease, which is a hereditary condition.

Since his success in Beijing, the 24 year-old has been clocking up milestones, becoming the first Paralympian to compete at the European Championships. He reached the semi-finals in Barcelona and this year set a new Northern Irish record at 100 metres.

For the past two seasons Jason has trained in Florida alongside some of the sport's highest profile names, such as former world champion Tyson Gay. Results and confidence show Jason has blossomed in that elite company.

His ambition now is to "double up" and sprint in both the Olympics and Paralympics next summer, which would be a first. At present he is just four one-hundredths of a second outside the qualifying standard for the mainstream competition in London - and his attempt to double up is inevitably attracting a lot of interest.

"Yes I want to qualify and get the Olympic 'A' standard." he told me.

"But it's more about being the best I can be, achieving my potential. Another thing, I suppose, especially for people with disabilities, is that it shows that nothing's impossible.

"That if you want to do something, if you put in the work, it's very much achievable."

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Man injured in work accident dies

29 July 2011 Last updated at 13:42 GMT The accident happened at the JTI factory in Ballymena A man critically injured in an industrial accident in Ballymena on Monday morning has died.

It is understood a piece of machinery fell on the man as it was being serviced. It happened at the JTI plant in the town.

The Health and Safety Executive is investigating the circumstances.

In a statement on Friday it said: "Heath and Safety Executive NI has been informed by the PSNI that the injured party has passed away this morning."

The man's name has not yet been released.

The JTI plant was formerly the Gallaher cigarette factory.

District journalist Nicola Weir said: "I'm being told that the man was part of a team that was servicing a robotic arm used at the JTI plant.

"It appears that during the servicing this arm fell onto the man and trapped him on scaffolding."

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Man injured in iron bar assault

31 July 2011 Last updated at 08:54 GMT Police have appealed for witnesses to the assault A man has been assaulted by three men wielding iron bars in west Belfast.

The attack happened at Arundel Walk off the Grosvenor Road at about 2245 BST on Saturday night.

The victim was taken to hospital for treatment for a leg injury and bruising. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

Anyone who has any information about what happened is asked to contact detectives at Grosvenor Road PSNI station or the Crimestoppers charity.

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Men assaulted and robbed by gang

27 July 2011 Last updated at 10:30 GMT Two men have been injured after being assaulted and robbed by a group of people in Portrush.

It happened at Causeway Street in the town at about 11:15 BST on Tuesday. Police said a number of people, both male and female, were involved.

It is believed one man suffered head injuries and the other man a laceration to his head. Neither's injuries are thought to be life-threatening.

Police have appealed for witnesses to contact them.

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Pipe bomb found in Crossgar alert

31 July 2011 Last updated at 08:46 GMT Police cordoned off an area of Crossgar on Saturday morning A pipe bomb has been discovered in a County Down village after a security alert on Saturday.

People living near the scene of the alert at Drumnaconagher Road, Crossgar, were asked to leave their homes after a suspicious object was found.

Army bomb experts carried out a controlled explosion and confirmed it was a pipe bomb.

Meanwhile, the Army removed a suspected firearm at Blackstown Road in Crumlin on Friday evening.

A police spokesperson said the item was found wrapped in bed linen.

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Man held on loyalist murder freed

30 July 2011 Last updated at 19:04 GMT Bobby Moffett's murder has been blamed on the UVF A 55-year-old man arrested on Saturday by detectives investigating the murder of Bobby Moffett has been released without charge.

Police said he was detained in the north Belfast area on Saturday morning.

Mr Moffett, a former loyalist prisoner, was shot dead by two masked gunmen on the Shankill Road in May last year.

The International Monitoring Commission said the killing was sanctioned by the UVF. A number of people have been arrested but no-one has been charged.

The leader of the UVF-linked Progressive Unionist Party, Dawn Purvis, resigned from the party in protest at the murder.

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Long reach

28 July 2011 Last updated at 16:11 GMT By Jim Fitzpatrick BBC NI Politics Show presenter Nama controls a number of property developments, some complete and others unfinished The Republic of Ireland's so-called bad bank, the National Asset Management Agency, has released details of properties it has repossessed.

But what does it tell us about the agency's impact north of the border?

Whenever the great property crash hit Ireland at the end of 2007, the Irish banks were stuck with billions of pounds of loans secured on property that was worth a lot less than those loans.

With so much bad debt the banks couldn't function, so the government created the National Asset Management Agency - Nama.

It relieved the banks of the burden, but passed it on to Irish taxpayers.

Now Nama manages billions of debt on a vast array of property connected to Irish banks in the Republic, Northern Ireland and further afield.

Previously Nama has said that it had taken over ?3.5bn of property loans in Northern Ireland. On Thursday we got a first glimpse of that.

The agency has published a list of properties whose developers they have put into receivership. There are houses, sites, a factory and even a pub.

Every county in Northern Ireland now has Nama-controlled properties.

The vast-majority - 49 - are in County Down. That's down to one developer whose properties feature for sale in the latest Belfast Telegraph property section.

Huge slump

Two full pages are from this Nama stable - you can pick up a shell apartment for ?40,000 or a seven bedroom home in Dromore, previously marketed for close to ?1m, for a mere ?400,000.

Why does this matter?

The property market in Northern Ireland is in a huge slump. Nama controls more property here than anyone else - by a mile.

The big worry for local politicians was that Nama might sell everything at a knock-down price.

That is not happening - because it is not in Nama's interests to do so.

But effectively Nama sets the level of the Northern Ireland property market so every move it makes is carefully watched and scrutinised.

Thursday's detail is just the tip of the iceberg as it includes only cases of enforcement action.

Many developers with multi-million pound loans are still trading away because Nama have judged that's the best chance they have of getting some money back at some stage.

So we have much, much more to learn about Nama and its ultimate impact on the value of not just these properties, but every home, office building, and piece of land in Northern Ireland.

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Man accused of sex attack on girl

26 July 2011 Last updated at 13:46 GMT Bishop Street courthouse A Londonderry man has been charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl in the city on Sunday night.

James Gallagher, 62, from St Columb's Wells, is accused of assaulting the girl at Bay Road.

His solicitor told Londonderry Magistrates' Court that his client said it was consensual and that he thought the girl was aged 17 or 18.

Bail was refused and the defendant was remanded in custody for a videolink hearing in three weeks' time.

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Titanic teenager gets headstone

29 July 2011 Last updated at 05:17 GMT The headstone will go up in Belfast City Cemetery A teenager thought to have been the first victim of the Titanic has finally been given a headstone on his grave.

Samuel Scott, 15, fractured his skull whilst working on the ship in 1910. His body has since lain in an unmarked grave in Belfast City Cemetery.

However, a new headstone was unveiled there on Saturday as part of the Feile an Phobail festival.

A new children's book, Spirit Of The Titanic, used the teenager as its main character.

The book, published earlier this year, follows the boy's ghost as it haunts the decks of the ship during its voyage.

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GAA coma man's family in appeal

29 July 2011 Last updated at 17:38 GMT Mark McGovern has been in a coma since the match The family of a gaelic footballer who has been in a coma since a match in the US last month want the opposing team to be suspended from all competitions.

Mark McGovern, 20, from Belcoo in Fermanagh, suffered a head injury in an off-the-ball incident in San Francisco.

His parents and three sisters have maintained a vigil at his hospital bedside for the last five weeks.

They claim the Celts, the team Mark was playing against, are not cooperating fully with the San Francisco police.

In a statement, the Celts said: "The San Francisco Celts continue to hold Mark McGovern and his family in their thoughts and prayers.

"The San Francisco Celts have been, and will continue to co-operate with all investigations regarding the incident."

A GAA spokesman said that the GAA felt it would be inappropriate to comment while there was still an ongoing investigation.

Mark's father, Danny, said he was saddened by what he said was a lack of co-operation from the Celts team.

"They're (the police) getting good co-operation from Mark's team but from the opposing team there's none of them coming up with information.

"They have videos and they're not bringing them up at all," Mr McGovern said.

"I have done my best this week to get them barred completely from playing football.

"They played a football match the following week after Mark's injury.

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We're here every day, seven days a week sitting at his bedside being confident and being strong around him because we feel that he knows we are there”

End Quote Sister of coma victim Mark McGovern "I do believe the president of the GAA is flying out to see Mark next Tuesday. We'll put pressure on him to get them suspended."

Mark arrived in the USA for a three-month stint with Ulster San Francisco the week before he was injured.

He was accompanied by two other members of his team Belcoo O'Rahilly's. The opposing Celts side is made up mostly of US-born players.

'Signs of improvement'

Mark was given immediate medical assistance at the scene after he was injured and put into a medically induced coma, from which he has yet to emerge.

Danny said he had shown slight signs of improvement.

"Mark has improved slightly. As they say in the hospital baby steps every day in the right direction," he said.

Mark's sister Connie said the family would stay with him until they could bring him home.

"We're here every day, seven days a week sitting at his bedside being confident and being strong around him because we feel that he knows we are there," she said.

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Red Sky company being taken over

27 July 2011 Last updated at 10:35 GMT The sale of Red Sky's Bel-Air company has saved 60 jobs. A company within the troubled Red Sky construction group has been taken over.

Bel-Air Refrigeration, bought by Red Sky a few years ago, has been run by administrators since the whole group went into administration in April.

The acquisition by Belfast-based BI Electrical Services will safeguard 60 jobs within Bel-Air.

The Housing Executive terminated all its maintenance contracts with Red Sky amid allegations over the company's work practices.

BI Electrical Services (NI) Ltd, a specialist in commercial and industrial electrical installation contracts and maintenance, acquired the trade and assets of Bel-Air for an undisclosed sum

Managing director Ian Humphreys said the company intended to build on the 60 jobs saved.

He said Bel-Air had increased its order book in the past two months "in excess of ?1m with new works".

"Whilst Bel-Air has been acquired by new owners it will continue trading as normal.

"The acquisition of Bel-Air provides a strategic fit with our existing business, providing electrical services to the public and private sector across Northern Ireland.

He said the two companies would continue to trade independently.

Mark Montgomery of Bel-Air Services, who has worked for the company for over 20 years, said the acquisition provides a solid foundation for continued growth.

He said: "The acquisition secures the future of Bel-Air given that BI Electrical Services is a very well established business and there will be new opportunities that will arise as a result."

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