Mother of schoolboy, 14, found dead in storm drain speaks out
The mother of schoolboy Noah Donohoe has described the six days between her son's disappearance and his body being discovered in June 2020 as a 'living nightmare'.Fiona Donohoe has said she is 'desperate' to find out what happened to Noah, who was found dead in a storm drain in Belfast.In her 999 call to police on the night he went missing, which was played at the teen's inquest, Ms Donohoe said she found her son crying in his room earlier that day. She said in an emotional witness statement that she believed a 'blind eye' had been turned to evidence and that she had concerns over whether her son's life could have been saved if police had taken the 'right steps' in their investigation.The long-awaited hearing into the death of Noah finally got under way yesterday at Laganside Courthouse in Belfast, where opening statements and first evidence was heard.Noah 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.Describing the events of June 21, 2020, the day Noah went missing, Ms Donohoe said in her witness statement that she 'feared the worst' when he did not return home at the agreed time.She said she became afraid when Noah did not answer his mobile when she tried to contact him. She said: 'My instinct told me something wasn't right.' Noah Donohoe was found dead in a storm drain in north Belfast, six days after he went missing Fiona Donohoe, the mother of Noah Donohoe, outside Belfast Coroner's Court on Wednesday Police look at a drain in Seaview Park in Belfast during the search for Noah on June 24, 2020Ms Donohoe said a friend drove her to Cavehill, but she could not find her son. She said she called 999 and reported Noah missing to police at around 9.45pm.Ms Donohoe added: 'I can't overstate how terrible the period between Noah going missing and his body being recovered on June 27 was for me.'I was in a state of constant fear and uncertainty, fearing the worst, but not knowing what had happened. I couldn't sleep, and I was beyond distressed and was emotionally vulnerable. It was a living nightmare.'Ms Donohoe was critical of a PSNI theory during the period of Noah's disappearance that the schoolboy had suffered a concussion after suffering a head injury.She said: 'I have so many concerns about what occurred during the period Noah was missing, including whether all necessary steps were taken promptly, whether lines of inquiry were closed off. And worst of all, whether Noah could have been saved if the right steps had been taken.' She added: 'I'm holding out hope that this inquest is able to provide me with answers as to what happened to Noah.'On CCTV footage, he is seen without his bag, then without his coat, and subsequently completely naked.'This was entirely out of character for Noah. I've no explanation for this behaviour, and desperately need some answers or some sort of explanation.'Ms Donohoe described her son as a 'beautiful, happy and much-loved soul'. She added: 'I am tormented with the thought that any part of his legacy could be tainted by rumour and suspicion about who he was or what happened to him.' The funeral cortege of Noah travels along Donegall Street in Belfast on July 1, 2020The jury was then played the recording of the 999 phone call she made to police on the evening he went missing on June 21, 2020.Ms Donohoe, visibly upset, left the courtroom during the playing of the call. In the recording, Ms Donohoe told police Noah had 'not been himself' and she was concerned for his safety.She said she had found him crying in his room earlier in the day. She said: 'I asked him why he was crying. He turned to me and said he was laughing.'She said that her son had never gone missing before.She also said Noah had been 'over-protective' and kept giving her hugs and telling her he loved her earlier in the day.She said: 'He has acted so out of character this week. He has been so up and down, his moods have been so out of character.'She also said her son had the book 12 Rules For Life by the author Jordan Peterson and 'he hasn't taken it out of his hands'.Earlier, Peter Coll KC, counsel for the coroner, delivered his opening statement, telling the jury they would see CCTV footage which showed Noah cycling in north Belfast wearing no clothes on the evening he went missing. He said the jury would hear evidence that the bars on the storm drain were far enough apart for Noah to pass through.The inquest continues.
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