An ongoing inquest into the tragic death of 14-year-old Noah Donohoe has heard compelling evidence from multiple witnesses who discovered his bicycle and helmet before the schoolboy was found deceased in a storm drain. The proceedings at Belfast Coroner's Court, now entering their third week, have revealed new details about the hours surrounding Noah's disappearance in June 2020.
Resident Testimony Reveals Discovery of Personal Items
Chris Morrow provided crucial testimony to the court, describing how he encountered Noah's black bicycle lying on its side on the footpath of Northwood Road. Mr Morrow explained that he had been visiting a relative in the area on the evening of June 21, 2020, when he noticed the abandoned bike as he was leaving. The following day, after finishing work, he spotted a black helmet on the street and immediately contacted police after seeing social media posts about a missing teenager.
"I did not see Noah in the area," Mr Morrow told the coroner's court, confirming that CCTV footage shown to him featured his own feet and those of his eldest daughter moving in the top right corner of the clip. He revealed that police had visited his home just two weeks earlier to make him aware of this surveillance footage.
Multiple Witnesses Corroborate Findings
Lauren Morrow, Chris's wife, provided a separate statement describing her own observations from that fateful evening. She reported leaving her grandfather's house on Northwood Road at approximately 7pm when she noticed a black bicycle lying on its side. Later, while walking her dog in Northwood Crescent, she discovered a black skater helmet positioned beside a lamppost.
"I noticed it as it was brand new, and I had thought to myself, why was it sitting there? It didn't appear to have any damage to it," Ms Morrow told the inquest, highlighting the unusual placement of the apparently undamaged helmet.
Another resident, Lauren Russell, testified that she went to check her front door was locked when she observed a navy jacket draped over a neighbour's wall. Upon investigating further, she found a pair of dark trainers with a distinctive bright orange or yellow Nike tick on the ground nearby.
"When I looked at it, it was as if somebody had placed them there," Ms Russell stated, adding that she initially wondered if the items belonged to workmen since her neighbour had been having construction work completed.
Disturbing Nocturnal Incident Reported
The inquest heard particularly unsettling testimony from Sandra Semple, who reported being awakened by someone attempting to open her back door during the early hours of June 22, 2020. Ms Semple explained that she had been sleeping downstairs in her Premier Drive home when she heard distinct noises at approximately 3am.
"I was in bed watching TV and shifting in and out of sleep. At about 3am I was woken by a noise at my back door, it was the back door handle being tried," she testified. "The back door was locked, and whoever was at the back door was moving the handle up and down as if to open it. This was the noise I heard."
Ms Semple confirmed that she did not look outside to identify who might have been attempting to enter her property during those early morning hours.
Ongoing Inquest Proceedings
The comprehensive inquest into Noah Donohoe's death continues to unfold at Belfast Coroner's Court, with the teenager's mother Fiona Donohoe attending every day of the proceedings as she seeks answers about her son's tragic passing. Last week's testimony included accounts from Noah's friends and additional witnesses who reported seeing the 14-year-old cycling in the area before his disappearance.
One particularly striking account came from a witness who described seeing Noah cycling naked on Northwood Road prior to his disappearance, while another resident testified to discovering his bicycle outside her residence. The inquest continues to examine the circumstances surrounding the six days between Noah leaving home to meet friends in the Cavehill area and the devastating discovery of his body in a north Belfast storm drain.
