Everything you need to know after week two of inquest into Noah Donohoe’s death

This week the inquest heard from the 14-year-old’s friends and a number of witnesses

The inquest into the death of Noah Donohoe is ongoing

Everything you need to know after week two of inquest into Noah Donohoe’s death

The second week of the inquest into the death of Belfast schoolboy Noah Donohoe took place at Laganside Court from Monday, January 26, to Thursday, January 29. Witnesses this week included two of Noah’s closest friends, Jay Tierney and Charlie Rocks, as well as a number of witnesses who saw him cycling in North Belfast, as well as those living in Northwood Drive.
One of Noah’s best friends, Jay Tierney, told the inquest on Monday that the 14-year-old was “excited for the future” in the days before he went missing in June 2020. He described Noah as “eccentric but not in a bad way” and “unpredictable,” saying the pair supported each other during the Covid-19 lockdown.
He said that they went on a long walk around Belfast on June 20, the day before Noah went missing. Noah chatted with him about a book, 12 Rules For Life by Jordan Peterson, but would not tell him what it was called because he felt Mr Tierney “didn’t need it”.
On Tuesday, the jury watched CCTV footage of Noah cycling naked in the moments before he went missing in 2020. The inquest also heard from Noah’s friend, Charlie Rocks, who said he had had no concerns about the mental health of his school friend at the time.
The jury heard evidence from a motorist, Donna Blain, who saw Noah on the same evening after he had fallen from his bike. She first contacted police during the period between Noah going missing and his body being discovered and then gave a statement 10 months after the schoolboy’s death.
Ms Blain was driving from the Shore Road on to North Queen Street when she saw Noah, who appeared to have fallen from his bike and was lifting it back off the ground.She said she did not know what caused the fall. The witness told the inquest that Noah was looking around as if embarrassed before he cycled off. She said he left his coat behind on the ground. She also said she did not see anything that gave the impression that Noah had been injured.
On Wednesday, a witness described the moment Noah fell from his bike on the day he went missing. Amanda Seenan, has said that they saw the teenager fall from his bike with this taking place as she was travelling behind him in a Black Vauxhall Corsa. In a statement she gave to police, she said: “He was to my left, I noticed the male took a tumble off his bike. He was just approaching the bus layby when he fell. I slowed down as I was about to come to the end of the road and see if the male was okay. I could see, though, that the male had jumped up and got onto his bike again.”
Ms Seenan said she was “confused” by a police theory that the schoolboy suffered a head injury. She told the inquest she did not see Noah suffer any such injury despite witnessing the fall she described as “not light.”
Another witness, Sinead Quinn, told the hearing she saw Noah in the moments after he had fallen from his bike, but did not see the fall itself. She said she saw a green coat on the road after the incident and sounded her horn in order to alert Noah to it, but he continued cycling. She said: “I beeped the horn to point this out to him. He looked startled, he didn’t lift the coat, but just cycled on, which I thought was strange.”
Nathan Montgomery, another witness, told the hearing that he had seen Noah cycle past his car on North Queen Street as he was leaving a Chinese takeaway. As he travelled in a red Audi toward the Seaview area to return home, he saw Noah again cycling in the direction of the York Road junction. Mr Montgomery said that while driving behind Noah, he had seen him “sway slightly” in the road which made him wary about passing him in his car and took additional care.
The jury heard on Thursday from the witness who found Noah’s bike on the evening he went missing. Karen Crooks, a resident of Northwood Road, also told the jury she had never been made aware of the dangers to children of a storm drain at the rear of her home before Noah’s body was found.
The court also heard from Kerry Fraser, who had been at her partner’s house in Northwood Road in north Belfast the evening that Noah left his home. Her statement was read to the court. She said she saw a male riding past the house. She said: “He was totally naked. I thought it was a man who had had too much to drink on Father’s Day and was having a prank. He was tall, had an afro hairstyle, and was black. He was sitting down cycling and did not appear to be distressed, although he was cycling quickly. I got up and went to the window and looked out, but he was away. I thought he must have gone into one of the houses.”