Witness who saw Noah Donohoe, 14, cycling naked on day he disappeared thought schoolboy was doing ‘prank’, inquest hears

A WITNESS has told the Noah Donohoe inquest that he thought it was a “prank” when he saw the schoolboy cycling naked on the day he disappeared.

The hearing at Belfast Coroner’s Court resumed yesterday following a week’s break.

Noah, a pupil of St Malachy’s College, was 14 when he was found dead in a storm drain in north Belfast in June 2020, six days after leaving home on his bike to meet two friends in the Cavehill area of the city.

A post-mortem examination found the cause of death was drowning.

The inquest, which is being heard with a jury, is now in its fourth week.

Noah’s mother, Fiona, has attended every day of the proceedings.

Connor McConnell told the hearing that he had been at his mother’s partner’s house on Sunday, June 21.

His first statement, which was read to the jury, said: “While at the house, I was sat facing the living room window that looks out onto Northwood Road when I saw a male cycle past the window naked.

“I initially thought that this was a prank.”

He said he had gone outside and saw items of clothing on the street.

Mr McConnell said he had later seen a dark car driving up the street and then saw two men talking at the top of the cul-de-sac.

CONCERNS OVER ‘INACCURACIES’

His statement said he concluded this had nothing to do with the naked cyclist.

The inquest heard that the witness had recently provided a second statement to the proceedings, after raising concerns about “inaccuracies” in his first statement.

The second statement said: “I told the police I had seen a nude male cycling up the street, and had observed his shoes neatly placed on the footpath and shorts and boxers looked like they had been stepped out of.

“These were also on the footpath, as were a T-shirt and hoodie, which I believed also belonged to the male.”