Man is charged with attempted murder of senior PSNI off icer
A MAN has been charged with the attempted murder of PSNI senior officer John Caldwell at a sports complex last year.
Detective Chief Inspector Caldwell was shot several times in front of his son as he loaded footballs into his car after a training session in Omagh, Co. Tyrone on February 22 last year.
Alan Lundy, 44, from Flax Street, Belfast, was charged with attempted murder, directing terrorism, and preparation of terrorist acts. He appeared before a special sitting of Dungannon Magistrates Court via video link yesterday morning, charged with the offences. His solicitor told the court there was no evidence to suggest her client had been involved in the shooting.
The solicitor said police had used mobilephone analysis to track Mr Lundy’s movements, adding this could not be relied upon. ‘I submit that police have created a narrative which is not supported by the evidence,’ she said.
Mr Lundy did not respond to any of the questions that were put to him by the district judge.
The court also heard that Mr Lundy remained silent during his seven hours of questioning by police.
The judge described the case as a circumstantial one that relied on a number of strands, including phone records, evidence of vehicle movement, CCTV, and observations made by police officers.
Mr Lundy was remanded in custody to appear before the court again later in February.
He is the eighth person to be charged with attempted murder in connection with the shooting of John Caldwell, and the eleventh charged in connection to the case.
Robert McLean, 29, James Ivor McLean, 72, Matthew McLean, 33, Jonathan McGinty, 28, Brian Carron, 38, Gavin Coyle, 45, and Alan McFarland, 47, have all been charged with attempted murder, while Coyle and Carron are further accused of belonging to the IRA.
Meanwhile, James Gerard McSorley, 58, John Andrew Gallagher, 45, and Tony Thomas Slevin, 47, have been charged with acts of terrorism in relation to a Ford Fiesta believed to have been used to carry out the attack.