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A preliminary hearing of the inquest into the death of Belfast teenager Noah Donohoe is to take place later on Friday.
In a statement from the Donohoe family issued ahead of the beginning of proceedings, Noah’s family confirmed that, “as reported in the media last week, the preliminary findings of the autopsy were that Noah had died of drowning, and that he did not suffer a severe head injury”.
They said it was the “family’s hope that the inquest will assist in answering the outstanding questions of how Noah was in a state of undress, and how he met his death in a storm drain.”
The 14-year-old’s body was found in the drain in north Belfast on June 27th, six days after he went missing.
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He had cycled across the city from his home in south Belfast to the Northwood Road area of north Belfast, where he was last seen just after 6pm on Sunday, June 21st, prompting a massive search by the emergency services, community rescue volunteers and members of the public.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said at the time that they believed he may have fallen off his bicycle and hit his head, and he was seen discarding his clothing and cycling naked, actions which police and his family said were "completely out of character".
However the police said there was “no evidence to suggest foul play.”
The Donohoe family also made an appeal to the public, saying “every single small piece of information will assist in the recovery of the answers to these heart-breaking and painful questions”.
“We specifically appeal to any householder in the Shore Road area [of north Belfast] who has CCTV in their homes to please keep the footage from the 21st June, not to overwrite it and please share it with the PSNI, Relatives for Justice or KRW Law. This will be treated in confidence,” they said.
Anyone with footage or other information is asked to contact info@relativesforjustice or niallm@kevinrwinters.com.
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