QUESTIONS RAISED OVER LOST EVIDENCE
Questions raised over lost evidence
BY PAUL HIGGINS
AN investigation into bomb parts which went missing from a forensic laboratory eight years ago only started "a couple of weeks ago", the Omagh bomb trial heard yesterday.
Under cross-examination for the second day at the trial of 37-year-old Sean Hoey in Belfast Crown Court, the acting operations director of the Forensic Science Agency Northern Ireland, Jim Speers, conceded it was an unacceptable situation.
However, he rejected a suggestion from defence lawyer Kieran Vaughan that it was "but another illustration of the problems that the lab has experienced over the years".
Mr Speers said that although it may appear "to the lay person" there was a general trend, "in reality, a lot of our cases are reviewed on numerous occasions...and errors are extremely rare".
Hoey, an electrician from Molly Road in Jonesborough, south Armagh, denies a total of 58 terrorist-related charges, including the Omagh bomb and the murders of the 29 people killed in it.
Later, the court heard that Hoey believes he is the victim of "a witch hunt" by the authorities.
Hoey made the claim during one of the dozens of interviews he had with police between September 1998, when first questioned, and September 2003, when finally charged with the Omagh bombing.
At one stage, Hoey even claimed that the authorities had planted his DNA on evidence in the case.
When asked if his DNA "has been planted, or it is there innocently", Hoey replied, "Yes".
Hoey alleged that if his DNA was found on evidence it was "put there by the police or some agency the police are using".
He further claimed that "if my DNA is there, it's there innocently".
Concerning the Omagh bombing itself, Hoey, who denied being a member of any paramilitary organisation, told detectives that he had "nothing to do with it, it was a terrible thing".
The trial continues.
BY PAUL HIGGINS
AN investigation into bomb parts which went missing from a forensic laboratory eight years ago only started "a couple of weeks ago", the Omagh bomb trial heard yesterday.
Under cross-examination for the second day at the trial of 37-year-old Sean Hoey in Belfast Crown Court, the acting operations director of the Forensic Science Agency Northern Ireland, Jim Speers, conceded it was an unacceptable situation.
However, he rejected a suggestion from defence lawyer Kieran Vaughan that it was "but another illustration of the problems that the lab has experienced over the years".
Mr Speers said that although it may appear "to the lay person" there was a general trend, "in reality, a lot of our cases are reviewed on numerous occasions...and errors are extremely rare".
Hoey, an electrician from Molly Road in Jonesborough, south Armagh, denies a total of 58 terrorist-related charges, including the Omagh bomb and the murders of the 29 people killed in it.
Later, the court heard that Hoey believes he is the victim of "a witch hunt" by the authorities.
Hoey made the claim during one of the dozens of interviews he had with police between September 1998, when first questioned, and September 2003, when finally charged with the Omagh bombing.
At one stage, Hoey even claimed that the authorities had planted his DNA on evidence in the case.
When asked if his DNA "has been planted, or it is there innocently", Hoey replied, "Yes".
Hoey alleged that if his DNA was found on evidence it was "put there by the police or some agency the police are using".
He further claimed that "if my DNA is there, it's there innocently".
Concerning the Omagh bombing itself, Hoey, who denied being a member of any paramilitary organisation, told detectives that he had "nothing to do with it, it was a terrible thing".
The trial continues.
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/678
Published Date: 13-Dec-06
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