Ogle murder charge man’s address move is opposed

TENSIONS over an alleged UVF gathering in east Belfast could be further heightened if a man charged with murdering community worker Ian Ogle is allowed to live in the neighbourhood, a court has heard.

Police also claimed Jonathan Brown’s bid to move to accommodation in the area would cause upset to the victim’s family.

The 35-year-old is among 10 people facing prosecution in connection with the murder.

Mr Ogle (45) was beaten and stabbed to death near his home at Cluan Place in east Belfast in January 2019.

The attack, which took place during a long-running feud, was said to have lasted for around 30 seconds.

Previous courts were told Mr Ogle is believed to have been targeted in response to an altercation earlier the same night.

A number of men arrived at the scene, allegedly launched the fatal assault and then fled.

Brown, previously of Mcarthur Court in Belfast, is currently on bail at an undisclosed location outside an exclusion zone.

He was seeking permission to move to another address in the east of the city for family reasons.

But a detective involved in the murder investigation strongly opposed the application to vary the bail terms.

Belfast Magistrates Court heard the proposed new address was approximately 1,000 metres from the scene of the murder.

The detective also referred to a separate incident last month at Pitt Park when up to 60 masked men gathered in a suspected paramilitary show of strength.

A judge was told there are “ongoing UVF tensions in the area”.

With a separate PSNI department investigating events at Pitt Park, the detective said the local police commander was also opposed to Brown relocating.

“She states that given the ongoing issues in the area, the applicant living in the area is bound to lead to increased tensions and to upset both the family and possibly raise tensions within the UVF in the area. Everybody I have spoken to has the same opinion. It would cause issues in the area,” the detective said.

During the hearing, it was stressed that Brown had no connection to the events last month.

Defence barrister Tom McCreanor said: “He is not involved in the current investigations which have been referred to, the so-called Pitt Park incident.”

But based on new information about the proposed address, he asked to have the application put on hold. Granting an adjournment, Deputy District Judge Liam Mcstay indicated: “I’m not satisfied at the moment there is a compelling need.”