Latest news with #BallymenaYouthCourt
Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Ballymena schoolgirl 'dragged into garage by thee males and raped', court hears
A schoolgirl was 'dragged into a garage while she was walking down a street in Ballymena by three men and raped', a court heard today as details emerged of the assault which sparked rioting A schoolgirl had been walking on a street when she was allegedly dragged into a garage by three men and raped, a court has heard. Details have emerged for the first time in court over a girl from Ballymena, Northern Ireland, who was allegedly raped and sexually assaulted in June. Two of the suspects were quickly arrested by police within hours but Ballymena Youth Court heard a third suspect has fled the country. This alleged rape and sexual assault ignited "racist" protestors to riot and unleash chaos on the streets of Ballymena, with some throwing petrol bombs, fireworks and bricks in horror scenes, according to police. A 14-year-old Romanian boy was arrested and has applied for bail. This teen and another 14-year-old boy are currently being remanded in custody after they were charged with attempted rape. The court today heard the third suspect fled back to Romania and had not been caught by cops yet. A detective constable told the court the girl's grandmother called the police in June and said the schoolgirl "had been raped by three Bulgarian males in a garage in Harryville", according to the Sunday World. The girl then told police she had been walking on the street but "three males grabbed her and took her to a garage down an alleyway". This schoolgirl then said there were two mattresses inside this alley and claimed she was put onto one. The court then heard the detective constable say two of the three men had their genitals out while they "started touching themselves". The detective constable then claimed one man - who fled the UK - "raped her" while the two 14-year-old's tried to sexually assault her. The policewoman said: "She said this went on for about 10 minutes, but when they heard a male voice outside, the three ran off." The court heard the young girl was allegedly then able to leave. The detective constable also told the court the 14-year-old who made a bail application, who cannot be named due to his age, denied the charges against him and did not answer police questions. The cop also told the court: "We believe that, given the significant public disorder that descended after the incident, there's a risk that, if released, this defendant will leave the jurisdiction and we are not content that any conditions can be put in place to prevent that." The judge adjourned the bail case and the other 14-year-old boy's case to August 6. Northern Ireland's Justice Minister Naomi Long, at the time the riots after the two boys were arrested, said she was "appalled" by the violence inflicted on attending officers and locals. She said: "I am absolutely appalled by the disturbing scenes in Ballymena yesterday evening during which PSNI officers were injured, residents terrorised, and properties damaged. There is absolutely no place in our society for such disorder and there can be no justification for it." The police service said its officers came under "sustained attack" from masked rioters and had items like fireworks, petrol bombs, bricks, and heavy masonry launched at them in the June unrest. PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said the violence was a result of "racist thuggery, pure and simple".
ITV News
6 days ago
- ITV News
Third suspect linked to alleged Ballymena rape fled to Romania, court told
You are advised that you may find some details in this report disturbing. Police have confirmed that they are seeking the extradition of a suspect who fled to Romania over the alleged rape of a schoolgirl in Ballymena. The incident sparked days of race-related anti-immigration rioting in the Co Antrim town, with linked outbreaks of violence in other parts of Northern Ireland. Ballymena Youth Court heard details of the alleged attack for the first time on Wednesday during a bail hearing for a 14-year-old Romanian boy, who cannot be identified because of his age. Another teenager is also in custody charged with the attempted rape. Both deny the charges. The court was told that the school girl was walking along a street in the Co Antrim town on June 7 when she was dragged into a garage and subjected to a violent sex attack by three males. The girl told police that once inside the garage, she claimed, there was two mattresses and she was ordered to get on one. The alleged attack lasted around 10 minutes. The girl was able to get away when the trio fled the scene after hearing voices. Two of the alleged were arrested hours later, the third has since fled to Romania. The bail application was adjourned until August.
Sunday World
6 days ago
- Sunday World
Ballymena schoolgirl ‘raped' after being dragged into garage by three males, court hears
While two of the suspects were arrested within hours of the incident on June 7, a third has fled back to Romania A Ballymena schoolgirl was walking along a street in the town when she was allegedly dragged into a garage, then raped and sexually assaulted by three males, a court heard today. Ballymena Youth Court was also told that while two of the suspects were arrested within hours of the incident on June 7, a third has fled back to Romania. Details emerged in court for the first time as a 14-year-old Romanian boy, who cannot be identified because of his age, applied for bail. The teenager, and another 14-year-old, are on remand in custody charged with attempted rape. It was hours after their first appearance in court on June 9 that rioting erupted in Ballymena. Racist rioting erupted in Ballymena in June Giving evidence during the contested application on Wednesday, a PSNI detective constable said the girl's grandmother contacted police that evening to report that her granddaughter 'had been raped by three Bulgarian males in a garage in Harryville'. When police attended and spoke to the girl, she told them she was walking along the street when 'three males grabbed her and took her to a garage down an alleyway'. Inside, the girl saw two mattresses 'and she was put on one'. The detective constable said two of the males had their genitals exposed and 'started touching themselves'. She added that while they allegedly tried to force the girl to perform sex acts on them, the third male, who has since absconded, 'raped her'. 'She said this went on for about 10 minutes, but when they heard a male voice outside, the three ran off,' the cop said. At that stage, the complainant 'was able to leave the garage and get help', and based on the information provided by the teenager, police went to an address on Clonavon Terrace where the two 14-year-olds were arrested. The court heard they 'matched the description' given by the alleged victim. The detective constable said the bail applicant 'denied any criminal activity' and then refused to answer police questions during his interviews. Turning to bail objections, the detective constable told District Judge Trevor Browne 'police have strong concerns that there's a risk he may leave the jurisdiction'. 'Within hours of the defendant being arrested, a co-accused who had been identified left the country and we believe he is residing in Romania. 'We believe that, given the significant public disorder that descended after the incident, there's a risk that, if released, this defendant will leave the jurisdiction and we are not content that any conditions can be put in place to prevent that,' said the officer. She added that while a proposed bail address outside of Ballymena had been put forward by the defence, there were concerns about that as well. The detective constable explained that while the occupant had been put forward as a relative, she told officers who spoke to her that 'she was a friend of the family', rather than a relative. The officer said police had also ascertained there were three children living in the property, including a 14-year-old girl. The detective constable said it was also a concern that another family with a young child appeared to be living in the house, a property she described as being 'in a poor state of repair'. 'Police do not believe that any conditions will satisfy [their concerns] and we are aware that there's an opportunity to surrender passports and ID cards, however, we believe there are other ways of leaving the country,' she concluded. Defence counsel Conn O'Neill said that none of those concerns had been raised with the defence before the hearing, adding that if they had been 'we could have dealt with them'. Highlighting that the defendant had voluntarily undergone DNA testing and an identity parade, he suggested that given the multitude of objections from the police, that the court adjourn the bail application. That would allow the defence to verify whether the woman who has put her address forward is related or a friend. It would also allow the defence the opportunity to make efforts to obtain an alternative address, said Mr O'Neill. Judge Browne told the barrister: 'I completely agree, with the best will in the world, the application just disintegrated before our very eyes 'We are all mindful that he is a 14-year-old boy with no previous convictions and there is a working presumption in favour of bail…but it would not be fair to force you on without giving you the opportunity to address this important obstacle.' Adjourning the bail application, the judge adjourned both cases to August 6. By way of an update, the prosecutor told the judge the case had been expedited, that the complainant has completed her achieving best evidence video interview with the police and that the 'target date for completion of the full file is the end of September'. Ballymena courthouse. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 16th
Belfast Telegraph
02-07-2025
- Belfast Telegraph
Case of two 14-year-olds charged with attempted rape in Ballymena being fast-tracked
Two Romanian teenagers charged with attempted rape were back in court today as a judge was told the case is being fast tracked. Ballymena Youth Court heard that because of the age of the two 14-year-old defendants, and the age of their alleged victim, the case is being treated as 'a purple file' – which means it must be expedited.
