19/05/2005

Armagh man to face 61 Omagh bomb charges

A 35-year-old Co Armagh man is to face 61 new charges linked to the 1998 Omagh bombing in which 29 people were killed.

Sean Gerard Hoey, from Jonesborough, appeared before court in Craigavon on Thursday to hear that he will face the new charges as well as 29 counts of murder next week.

His solicitor, Peter Corrigan, said the case had been handled in a "most unacceptable manner" and that he had not been informed that the DPP had directed police to bring charges against his client earlier this month.

A police spokesperson, however, said "significant time and resources" had been dedicated to the ongoing investigation.

Twenty-nine people were killed and hundreds injured in the car bomb attack in the Co Tyrone town on 15 August 1998.

The bombing, which was later claimed by dissident republican paramilitary group the Real IRA, was the worst single atrocity in the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’.

(MB)

Related Northern Ireland News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

23 November 2005
Man being questioned over Omagh bombing
A man is still being questioned by detectives in connection with the 1998 Omagh bombing in which 29 people died. The 34-year-old was arrested in the south Down area on Tuesday. It is the latest arrest by police in connection with the bomb attack.
10 March 2015
Viable Pipe Bomb Found In North Belfast
A viable pipe bomb has been found in north Belfast, police have confirmed. Police and army bomb experts discovered the device in the garden of a house in Shore Crescent on Monday. The pipe bomb has been removed for further examination. Police are appealing for anyone with information to contact them.
25 February 2011
Lisburn On Alert As Pipe Bomb Explodes
There's an ongoing security alert in progress in Lisburn, Co Antrim after a pipe bomb device exploded at 9.30am this morning. A family escaped injury in the blast and the PSNI have said this afternoon that is not clear if the explosion occurred when the car drove over it, or that it had fallen off the vehicle.
21 August 2001
Overnight gun and pipe bomb attacks
A number of people have escaped injury after a series of gun and pipe bomb attacks on their homes in County Antrim. A ten-year-old boy escaped in jury after shots were fired into a house at Mounthill Drive in Cloughmills, County Antrim.
09 September 2008
Belfast Man Held After Police Swoop On Dublin 'Pipebomb' Factory
Gardai in Dublin, investigating dissident republican activity, have arrested a Belfast man. A police swoop in the West Park area of the city has resulted in five men being held by officers. It is believed all the men are in their twenties. Detectives at the scene discovered equipment used for making pipebombs.