County Derry Post

Four County Derry men are to stand trial next year accused of attempting to extort £8,000 from a man.

Brian Conwell and Jonathan Forrest, both of no fixed abode, Patrick Magowan, of Learmount Road, Claudy, and Jason Irwin, of Lackagh Park, Dungiven, appeared at Limavady Magistrates’ Court for a preliminary enquiry on Wednesday.

Magowan and Conwell are jointly charged with demanding £8,000 from witness A in the county court division of Derry on July 3 last year, and with possession of a firearm or imitation firearm with intent to cause a person to believe violence could be used against them.

Magowan was further charged with making the same demand for money from witness A between July 4 and August 25 last year, while Conwell faced three further counts of the same charge between July 14-30 and on July 17 and 18 last year.

Conwell, Irwin and Forrest are jointly charged with making an unwarranted demand for £8,000 from witness A on August 13 last year.

Vincent Browne, of the Public Prosecution Service, submitted that there was a case to answer.

 All four defendants declined to say anything in answer to the charges.

Mr Browne made an application for them to be returned to Belfast Crown Court, however, one of the defence barristers argued that the case had been going on for a year and a half and asked that it be returned to Derry.

 The four were released on continuing bail to appear at Derry Crown Court on January 9. 

A teenage hurling star killed in a car crash earlier this month has been voted player of the year by a top GAA website.

Karl McAuley, from Strawmore Road Draperstown, died after his Seat Leon left the road between Draperstown and Tobermore on December 1.

Now the 17-year-olds former team mates and opponents have recognised the rising star’s talents by voting him Underage Hurler of the Year on the popular Derry GAA website.

Tipped for a bright future, Karl played both hurling and football for his local club, Saint Colm’s Ballinascreen.

Michael McMullan, who helps run the website, said the award was a fitting tribute to the tragic teenager.

“I think it is a fitting tribute to Karl. He played in the under 16 championship football final last year and was man of the match. He was a much improved player and coming up strong. We have county minor trials next month and he would probably have been one of the Ballinascreen representatives.

“I think this is a good way to honour him, it’s a good achievement.”

Outgoing county secretary and Ballinascreen clubman Danny Scullion said the award was well earned.

“I am delighted that he has been honoured in this way,” he said. “He was a very good sports person at both football and hurling. It’s a reflection of the esteem he was held in, he was a very popular figure.

 “He was also a very clean and honest player, there were no back doors, and he played the game the way it should have been played. And he was popular because of that as well.”

A Swatragh playgroup had a special visit from Santa last week – but staff are hoping it won’t be the last time he calls.

Gran Tots Playgroup is facing an uncertain future because its current premises are such bad condition.

Unless the playgroup manages to raise £100,000 for a new home, it will be forced to close.

So although the children enjoyed the visit of Santa last week, there is concern he may not be calling next year.

Chairperson Brigid Kearney said: “Our current building is sadly on it’s last legs and just about holding together. We urgently need to replace it.

“The local community has supported the playgroup down the years, and we again beg them to assist, if we do not replace the current building we are looking at the closure of this much needed service in the local area.”

Gran Tots Playgroup originally opened in 1989 in the local community hall and was run voluntarily by local mothers.

Almost twenty years on it is still run by a voluntary committee and a dedicated staff.

The cross community playgroup runs at full capacity with places for up to 26 pre-school children.

Local mother Eileen O’Kane said she would be heartbroken if the playgroup had to close.

“This is a wonderful playgroup were my second son is now attending, I hope it will be here for my third son too.

“If it closed it would be a real big miss for the children’s development and preparation for school.”

The playgroup has launched a major fundraising campaign to raise money to replace the current mobile class room, which is badly run down.

It is hoped with funding and grants that the target of £100,000 can be achieved.

Treasurer Briege Church said: “As a charity we are applying to a number of bodies for assistance, but it is difficult to obtain much needed money.

“Local business are always giving to the playgroup, in forms of money, gifts for raffles and prizes, of which we are most grateful.

“The committee and staff try to have one fundraiser a month, with car boots, craft fairs, fireside quizzes, draws, and our annual sponsored walk which take place every March, and many many more.”

A young woman had a miracle escape yesterday after her car crashed near Draperstown.

The woman, who comes from the Draperstown area,  was involved in a terrifying accident yards from the spot where teenager Karl McAuley died in a car crash just over two weeks ago.

The woman, who is believed to be in her 20s, was cut from the wreck of her silver Rover 220 by fire fighters after it left the road and landed on its roof as she travelled along the Draperstown to Tobermore road yesterday morning.

The injured woman was taken to Antrim Area Hospital where her condition was described as comfortable last night.

Independent Sinn Fein councillor Patsy Groogan said he is deeply concerned by the latest accident on the killer stretch of road.

“This is the third accident on this road in just over two weeks so the Road Service need to look into this as a matter of urgency.”

 A spokesperson for the DRD Road Service said: “At this stage the PSNI investigations into the accidents are still ongoing but as yet they have brought nothing to Roads Service’s attention that would suggest road factors contributed to either accident.”   

A Glenullin man suffering from cancer has helped raise money for others experiencing ill health.

Seamus Mullan has raised over £2,000 to help benefit others receiving medical attention.

Seamus recently managed to organise fundraising events in Glenullin which proved to be a huge success.

The local man said: “I organised a night recently at Glenullin GAA club, where one of the nurses from Rapid Response and a friend provided the music as ‘Fresh Duo’.

“It was a very good night and we managed to raise a lot of money by the local community offering voluntary subscriptions at the door.  It was excellent to see the amount of people in the club contributing to this worthy cause.”

Seamus gave £500 to the Sperrin Room at Altnagelvin Hospital and £500 to the Cancer Unit in the City Hospital which he helped to fundraise.

He also raised a whopping £1,255 for Rapid Response nurses who have been treating Seamus for the past few years.

The kind-hearted man expressed his gratitude to the nurses and the people of Glenullin.

“The nurses have been treating me and trying to get me back to life again and I wanted to give something back to the girls. I am very grateful for the support we received on the night.”

Rapid Response nurse Carmel McCaugharn was delighted with the amount of money that was raised.

 “We would like to say thanks to the people of Glenullin for their hospitality.

 “We don’t know how to spend the money yet, but it will be spent well on something that is going to benefit patient care.” 

The chairman of the GAA in County Derry has called on the PSNI and politicians to do more to end attacks on the association.

Seamus McCloy spoke out after police told officials at up to 14 GAA clubs across the county to check their grounds last week.

The security alerts later turned out to be hoaxes.

The security operation was launched just hours after a “viable device” was left at a GAA club in County Down.

“This sort of thing seems to be going on a long time,” said Mr McCloy.

“We are a sporting organisation and 80 per cent of our members are under 18 and a lot of our work is being done on the ground.

“Those who would want to attack the GAA need to say why and offer a reason.

“The police and politicians need to find out why this is happening and do more to stop it.

“It’s only 10 years ago since we lost the chairman of a GAA club in Derry, Sean Brown in Bellaghy.”

A spokesman for the PSNI said: “Police condemn any act that puts the lives of the public at risk.

“We will continue to work with the community to make Northern Ireland a safer place for everyone.

“Anyone with information about criminal activity should contact the local police station.”

The Police Ombudsman has been urged to launch a probe after a man’s body lay undiscovered in a river for a week.

It emerged last night that Paul Gordon’s body lay undetected in the River Moyola after his car flipped over a bridge at Derrynoid Road, Draperstown, and landed in swollen waters sixty feet below.

And although the 48 year old’s car was only discovered by a local farmer last Saturday, it emerged at the weekend that the PSNI received reports of an accident a full seven days earlier.

 Independent Sinn Fein councillor Patsy Groogan says the Police Ombudsman should investigate the incident.

“The police say they came out here but they missed the car but if they came out then show me the records,” he said.

“You have to wonder if they were out here and had seen that car in the water maybe this man’s life could have been saved.”

A stone mason by trade, Mr Gordon originally came from Carrickfergus.

It is understood his red Alfa Romeo car was carried several hundred metres down the River Moyola by flood water before coming to a rest.

Draperstown man Colm O’Kane witnessed the police recovery  operation.

“It was lying upside down in the middle of the river. There were a lot of   stones in the car and they started to shovel them out.

“Then someone said there was a body in the car. I left then, I didn’t really want to be there after that.”

 Local newsagent David O’Kane knew the dead man.

“A lot of young people knew him around here. I didn’t know him socially, but he would have been in the shop a lot. He was a quiet fellow.”

A spokesman for the PSNI said: “Police are appealing for information regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of Paul Gordon.

“They particularly want to hear from anyone who saw the 48 year old man in the weeks leading up to Saturday, December 8th.”

It might not have brought the result he wanted, but in terms of experience Drumsurn’s budding Ulster rugby fly-half Niall O’Connor says that in his Heineken Cup debut was everything he had hoped for and more.

In caretaker Steve Williams’ last game in charge, the changes were rung and the former Limavady Grammar School pupil 10 was one of those to benefit as he grabbed a start in front of a packed Ravenhill against the Neath – Swansea Ospreys on Friday night.

And he grabbed three early points to cap a personal milestone that he hopes is the first of many European nights in the white jersey.

“It was brilliant, it was everything I had hoped it would be and more.  I always wanted to play in the Heineken Cup and to do it in front of a packed house at Ravenhill was fantastic.  The result wasn’t what we wanted but the Ospreys are one of the strongest teams in the tournament and the performance was certainly better than the last game.”

“I found out I’d be starting when the manager announced the side on Tuesday morning.  I don’t usually get nervous before games but it was different this week.”

  His early penalty was one of just two scores for the Ravenhill outfit as they slipped to a 16-8 defeat, albeit in a much improved performance where they were hampered by two yellow cards in the second half.  The side’s next game is against Leinster in a Magners League clash on Boxing Day and the former Drumsurn Gaelic footballer says that retaining his place is the aim, though he admits it won’t be easy.  “Definitely I’ll be looking to keep my place but I’ll just have to wait and see when the team’s announced.  David Humphreys, I think is nearly fit and Paddy Wallace is there as well so I’ll just have to see how it goes.”  

And by the time that game comes around, the likelihood is that there will be a new coach in charge after the resignation last month of Mark McCall, with interim boss Williams’ time now looking at an end and the young stand-off reckoning that the next week will see a new man at the helm.

  “Something is going to happen soon but we know very little, everything’s very hush-hush.  I’d expect something to be sorted in the next week or so.  “A new manager is difficult for some players but it’s a chance for others, everyone has to go out and impress.  Everyone has a clean slate to work off so it’s certainly a chance,” he said.

A Polish man is recovering in hospital after being stabbed in a knife attack in Dungiven.

The man was stabbed in the stomach as he tried to break up a fight at John T’s Bar on Dungiven’s Main Street on Saturday night.

The Good Samaritan had only recently moved to Dungiven from Poland.

The man, believed to be in his mid 20’s, was knifed after he went to break up a brawl involving up to 30 people attending a special event for foreign nationals in the pub.

A second man suffered a stab wound to his upper thigh and cuts to his back during the incident but has since been released from hospital.  

It is understood that while members of the Polish and Latvian communities were involved in the fight, it was sparked by a personal dispute.

 The man was rushed to Altnagelvin Hospital after the attack where he was last night described as “stable”.

The two men were attacked while attending a social evening organized by a local group, Glenshane Community Development Ltd.

Manager Mairead McCormack comforted the most seriously injured man as he waited for medical help to arrive.

“We hold evenings like this at various venues in Dungiven,” said Mairead.

“They are very popular and everyone looks forward to them. I was with the fellow who was stabbed as we waited for help. He was full conscious and talking. The incident was not motivated by racism but a symptom of our knife-carrying culture.”

The owner of John T’s Bar, Sean Millar, said he is totally shocked by the knife attack.

 “We have events like this on a regular basis and have Polish people working for us but have not had anything like this happen before. We never had any reason to think anything like this would happen.

“If we thought there would be problems we wouldn’t hold these nights.

“Once the incident happened the doormen acted swiftly, got the lights on and the place cleared out. My staff helped to assist the injured until an ambulance arrived.”

 A spokeswoman for the PSNI said they are still trying to establish a motive for the attack.  

Two councils in County Derry have joined forces to launch a new hard-hitting campaign to tackle alcohol abuse among young people.

Magherafelt District Council and Limavady Borough Council have created the ‘Where is your child tonight?’ initiative in bid to encourage parents to take more responsibility for their children’s whereabouts.

Shocking posters of a young girl lying drunk in a street have been placed on buses in both council areas to raise awareness of the campaign which has been launched to coincide with the busy Christmas season.

The project, delivered by the Community Safety Partnerships in each area, aims to deliver an awareness raising campaign to local parents, urging them to pay attention to the whereabouts of their children at all times and asks the questions:

-         Do you know where they are?

-         Do you know who they’re with?

 -         Do you know what they’re doing?   

The initiative, funded by the Community Safety Unit, will also aim to stimulate debate around the key community safety issues of anti-social behaviour, youth offending and drug, substance and alcohol abuse which are problematic in both areas.

The campaign is being co-ordinated by Bridget McCaughan, Community Safety Officer with Limavady Borough Council, and her counterpart in Magherafelt, Michael McCrory.

Mrs McCaughan said parents had a key role to play in protecting their children.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to highlight the issue of parental awareness around the subjects of drug and alcohol mis-use and anti-social behaviour at this key time of year,” she said.

Vintners in Magherafelt and Limavady council areas will be offered beermats and posters to display in their premises.

The campaign will run for six weeks at what is a peak seasonal time for anti-social behaviour and alcohol abuse.

  For further information on this initiative contact the Community Safety Partnership in Magherafelt on 79397979 or in Limavady on 77760311.