Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Lyra cops link suspect to murder weapon..
Dad, 27, charged with possessing firearm
A DETECTIVE probing the death of Lyra Mckee believes DNA found on the murder weapon belongs to a man who was in court yesterday.
The 29-year-old was shot dead by a New IRA gunman during disturbances in the Creggan area of Derry on April 18 last year.
The police witness told District Judge Steven Keown that forensic scientists believed one of the traces found on the weapon was 70 million times more likely to belong to the defendant than anyone else.
And the second trace was a million times more likely to belong to him than another person.
Father-of-two Niall Sheerin is charged with possessing a firearm in suspicious circumstances and with possessing a Hammerli pistol and several rounds of ammunition with intent to endanger life or cause serious injury to property.
The 27-year-old denies committing the two offences between September 12, 2018 and June 5 of this year.
The pistol and ammo as well as a command wire and an explosive device were found in fields adjoining the Ballymagroarty Estate in Derry on June 5 of this year.
The officer said the weapon used in the murder of Ms Mckee had been stolen from a registered firearms dealer in Co Fermanagh in 2008 and had been used in four paramilitary shootings in Derry between September 2018 and March last year. He described the pistol as “a New IRA weapon” and said the DNA swabs were found on its slide which is used to load the gun. The detective added it was found to have been the gun used to kill Ms Mckee following test firings and forensic examinations.
He believed the New IRA, which claimed responsibility for Ms Mckee’s murder, intended to “retain the gun to continue to endanger life”. The constable said the defendant was interviewed seven times following his arrest and when asked about his DNA being found on the pistol he said: “I am at a loss as to how this happened.”
He added police objected to bail because they believed the defendant would reoffend, interfere with witnesses and leave the jurisdiction. The defendant, of Tyrconnell Street in the Brandywell area of the city, was released on his own bail of £500 together with a surety of £500.
As part of his conditions he must reside at an address outside the 30mph zone around Derry and report to the police five days each week.
He will also be electronically monitored and he must observe a 10pm to 7am curfew.
Mr Keown also ordered the defendant not to have any direct nor indirect contact with the two co-defendants and to stay away from the offices of the organisation Seoradh in Chamberlain Street in Derry.