Noah Donohoe: Inquest into death of Belfast schoolboy identifies police failures

Failures in the police investigation into the disappearance of Noah Donohoe impacted the ability to determine the circumstances of his death, an inquest has found.

The jury in the long-running inquest into the death of the 14-year-old unanimously agreed on Tuesday that he died before he was reported missing.

Jurors also found that the management of access to a water culvert possibly contributed to his death.

Noah's naked body was found in the water culvert in north Belfast in June 2020, six days after he left home on his bike to meet two friends in the Cavehill area.

His cause of death was found to be drowning in a post-mortem examination.

Jurors identified 13 subsequent failings, mostly relating to the police investigation, that impacted the ability of the inquest to reach a conclusion on aspects of the case.

The police errors included not securing crucial CCTV footage, failures related to the search of a house linked to a man who stole Noah's discarded laptop and errors regarding inquiries into the whereabouts of the teenager's coat.

Jurors also found the house-to-house search to find Noah had been "poorly" executed, with statements not taken in a reasonable timeframe and notes being of low quality.

Phone location data and failure to identify the potential relevance of a photo of an unknown handprint captured on Noah's phone around the time he disappeared were also identified by jurors.

Assistant Chief Constable Davy Beck said they acknowledge the impact of Noah's death, which he described as a tragedy.

"We note the coronial jury's findings and as with any investigation, it is important that we reflect on any learnings and ensure they are applied in the future," he said.

"Officers were determined in their efforts to locate Noah and bring him home.

"Sadly, there was no action that police could have taken, that would have prevented Noah's death."

Following 32 hours of deliberation, the jury found it was not "probable" that failings by the Department of Infrastructure, which managed the culvert, contributed to Noah's death, they did agree that it was "possible".

Jurors said a failure to identify the culvert entrance as a location that the public could possibly access meant no warning signs were erected at the location and it was only covered by a debris screen.

"As a consequence, Noah was able to access the culvert via the debris screen," the jury foreman said.

On the day he went missing, CCTV evidence and witnesses show that Noah took a detour from his planned route, cycling instead along York Road and ended up on Northwood Road, where it is suggested he entered the tunnel via the culvert.

The inquest was shown CCTV of Noah cycling naked along Northwood Road, and evidence that some residents heard noises including screams on the night of 21 June when Noah went missing.

The jury found there was insufficient evidence to explain Noah's behaviour after he left his house at 5.40pm that night.

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Jurors determined that he died in the culvert between 7pm and midnight that night.

Noah was reported missing the following morning, meaning that police errors or inaction did not lead to his death.

Despite the six-month probe into his death, mystery still surrounds many of the circumstances.

Noah's mother Fiona Donohoe, who has led a high-profile campaign for answers around his death, has been present at Belfast Coroner's Court for every day of the inquest.

Niall Murphy, who represented Ms Donohoe, said: "Fiona Donohoe has suffered indignity after indignity since Noah's disappearance and death six years ago, most often at the hands of those who she trusted to bring her son home, and those who carried a duty to give her answers."

He added: "It should be a basic minimum that the Department for Infrastructure prevent access by children to deadly culverts in residential areas."

In a statement, Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins said she accepted the findings.

"My thoughts are with Noah's mother Fiona and her family. As a mother myself, I can't imagine the pain that Fiona and her family must feel everyday since the loss of her beautiful boy," she said.

"I unreservedly accept the findings of the inquest.

"As minister, I will make sure the department does everything it needs to ensure all lessons are learned."

The jury also saw CCTV of Noah leaving his home at about 3.30m on the day he went missing, returning just over half an hour later, without his headphones and flip flops. The footage was not viewed by police until 2022.

It included 76 witnesses, statements from a further 42 people, as well as maps, video footage, photographs, police logs and expert reports.

(c) Sky News 2026: Noah Donohoe: Inquest into death of Belfast schoolboy identifies police failures