An East Belfast man was found guilty on Friday of planting crude pipe bomb devices at a GAA ground
A number of people appeared before courts across Northern Ireland this week, charged with different offences.
One court heard that a pensioner who preyed on vulnerable young women addicted to heroin by trafficking them into prostitution is to have his prison sentence increased. High-profile loyalist Winston ‘Winkie’ Irvine’s prison sentence for having guns and ammunition in the boot of his car is to be doubled, the Court of Appeal ruled on Wednesday.
And a fresh trial date concerning a former police officer accused of misconduct in a public office was confirmed at Belfast Crown Court on Friday.
Here’s a roundup of some of this week’s court appearances, from September 22-26:
Judge urged to jail men guilty of McKeown murder to 20 years without parole
A judge was urged to send two men to prison for a minimum of 20 years without parole for the murder of convicted criminal Malcolm McKeown to reflect society’s revulsion at the “scourge of gangland violence”.
In June this year Jake O’Brien, 31, and Andrew Thomas Kenneth Martin, 30, were found guilty at Belfast Crown Court of the “carefully planned and brutal assassination” of McKeown in 2016.
The pair were also found guilty of possession of two guns used to murder the 54-year-old at close range.
Read more here.
Lisburn OAP who trafficked women into prostitution has sentenced increased
A pensioner who preyed on vulnerable young women addicted to heroin by trafficking them into prostitution is to have his prison sentence increased, the Court of Appeal ruled on Tuesday.
Senior judges held the seven-year term originally handed down to Oliver James MacCormack, 72, was unduly lenient. The former car salesman was told he must now serve a nine-year sentence for a campaign of exploitation described as the most serious of its kind in Northern Ireland.
Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan said: “He portrayed himself as some sort of saviour, rather than a calculated abuser of vulnerable young women.”
Read more here.
Two men handed jail terms for drug charges “linked to New IRA”
Three people in their 20s were sentenced for a series of drug offences linked to the New IRA.
Police say the sentences followed a number of searches at properties and vehicles in West Belfast and Dunmurry in June 2023.
Two men, both aged 27, were given jail terms while a woman, aged 28, was handed a suspended sentence.
Read more here.
Winkie Irvine has sentence increased for having guns and ammo in his car boot
High-profile loyalist Winston ‘Winkie’ Irvine ’s prison sentence for having guns and ammunition in the boot of his car is to be doubled, the Court of Appeal ruled on Wednesday.
Senior judges held that the original two-and-a-half year term imposed on the Belfast man was unduly lenient.
Ordering him to serve five years instead, they backed prosecution submissions that his reputed community and peace building work were wrongly treated as exceptional circumstances.
Read more here.
PhD student who stored shotgun and ammunition in coal bunker avoids jail
A Belfast man who stored a sawn-off shotgun and ammunition in his coal bunker whilst under “pressure from others” avoided an immediate prison sentence on Thursday.
Gareth Rice, who was studying for a PhD when his home was searched in February 2023, was handed a 32-month sentence which was suspended for three years.
From Abbey Park, the 31-year old father-of-one made the case that he was asked by others to store a bag, he didn’t know the contents and that he felt under threat to do so.
Read more here.
East Belfast man found guilty of planting crude pipe bomb devices at GAA ground
An East Belfast man was found guilty on Friday of planting crude pipe bomb devices at a GAA ground.
John Wilson, 59, of Lower Braniel Road, had denied possession of explosives in suspicious circumstances.
He further denied three further offences of attempting to intimidate members of the club “unlawfully by force, threats, or menaces” from attending or playing sports at Henry Jones Playing Fields in east Belfast.
Read more here.
Man who murdered mother of four has prison sentence reduced
A tariff imposed upon a 37-year old man who murdered his partner was reduced by a senior judge.
In June of this year, John David Scott was handed a minimum term of 19 years in prison for the murder of his 32-year old partner Natasha Melendez.
This term was reduced to 17 years and nine months at Belfast Crown Court on Friday.
Read more here.
Former cop accused of misconduct in a public office has new trial date
A fresh trial date concerning a former police officer accused of misconduct in a public office was confirmed at Belfast Crown Court on Friday.
Lesley Stock, who is now retired, denies the charge which dates back to the loyalist flag protests over a decade ago and involved alleged online contact with Jamie Bryson.
The case has been the subject of numerous delays and ongoing legal arguments and was listed for mention again today.
Read more here.
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