THEY HAVE BLACKENED MY NAME
St Pat’s horror hotel owner’s anger at police ‘de-arrest’ over alleged drug offences
THE owner of a hotel where three teenagers died at a St Patrick’s night party last night claimed police “blackened my name”.
Michael Mcelhatton, 52, spoke out after he was arrested – then “de-arrested” – over drugs offences.
A police spokesman said they had “de-arrested a 52-year-old man, who was arrested earlier today on suspicion of possession of a Class A drug with intent to supply”.
They added: “This follows fasttrack forensic examination of a suspicious package consisting of a white-powder substance and tin foil, found during a search of a house in Moneymore.
Mr Mcelhatton, who was detained with another man on suspicion of the manslaughter of Morgan Barnard, Lauren Bullock, both 17, and 16-yearold Connor Currie, said: “I have no choice but to make it completely clear I have nothing whatsoever to do with drugs.
“I am shocked and horrified that the powdery substance taken by police from the laundry in my house could be drugs.
“Despite there being no basis to these suspicions, they have blackened my name and caused so much upset for so many people especially those who are grieving and distressed.”
ARREST
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton said: “Further to our statement on the arrest of a male, we would like to add the following clarification.
“As a consequence of the arrest of a person on suspicion of manslaughter a search was carried out at the home of the suspect.
“The search discovered a mediumsized clear polythene bag containing an amount of a white powdery substance and pieces of tin foil.
“This discovery led to the suspicion that the substance was a Class A drug. In line with normal procedure the suspect was arrested on suspicion of possession of a Class A drug with intent to supply.
“This arrest was communicated to the media in line with procedure. Given the gravity of the investigation the examination of the bag was carried out urgently.
“Once opened by the Forensic Science Agency, the substance was ascertained to be innocent.
“The suspect was then de-arrested in respect of the drugs offence and a communication made to the media.
“We would like to make it clear there is no suspicion of any crime relating to misuse of drugs on behalf of the person who remains in custody.
“The actions taken were in good faith and in line with procedure.
“We will continue to carry out a rigorous investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths of these young people and we are deeply grateful for the huge assistance we are receiving from the community and we hope people will continue to come forward.”
Morgan, Lauren and Connor will all be buried tomorrow.
Lauren is to be laid to rest following Requiem Mass at 11am at St Patrick’s Church in Donaghmore.
Morgan is to be buried at Dungannon’s Carland Road Cemetery following his funeral at St Patrick’s, Dungannon at 10am.
Connor will be buried following a 2pm service at St Malachy’s Church, Edendork.
Yesterday it emerged a Northern Ireland-wide health and safety forum is “looking into the lessons that need to be learned” from the tragedy. Newry SDLP councillor Michael Friends at the hotel
A MENTAL health expert warned yesterday of far-reaching implications for young people who witnessed the St Patrick’s might tragedy.
Dr Petra Corr, right, said kids could be “traumatised by what they have seen and what they have heard and the sharing of images”.
She also voiced concerns for the “broader community” as well as the “police, ambulance, council and hotel Savage said: “We all have a responsibility to ensure this never happens again.
“Our council’s licensing and health and safety team are members of a staff who came to help”. She added: “There are immediate issues in the midst of the crisis and then the longer term issues.
“What some of those groups need will be different to what they need in a future stage.
“We are very keen for people to forum which is looking into the lessons that need to be learned from this tragic incident and I would urge council officers to start a process of engagement with local promoters and Morgan Barnard, Lauren Bullock, both 17, and Connor Currie, 16 understand they have had a very traumatic experience and their reactions to that will be a whole range of psychological responses.
“They may have intrusive thoughts impacting on their ability to concentrate, they may haver quite a range of symptoms such as low mood, anxiety and irritability.
“Those are very normal reactions to a very abnormal situation.” venue owners to ensure number restrictions and crowd control measures are in place for any future events.
“Whatever lessons are learned from this we need to ensure they are implemented to the full at all local events going forward so that our teenagers can enjoy nights out with their friends in a safe environment.”
Police believe as many as 400 young people may have been involved in the incident.
The PSNI’S Major Investigation Team has set up at Burnavon Arts Centre.
Det Supt Richard Campbell said: “I would ask witnesses who have not yet spoken to police to talk to us.”