One of the men accused of the attempted murder of former Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell has been refused a bail variation for an overnight stay in a hotel in Newry with his partner on Valentine’s Day.
As the incident approaches the two year mark, an application was made to allow 45-year-old Alan Lundy, previously of Flax Street, Belfast but bailed to reside in Cookstown, to have his curfew and residence conditions varied.
DCI Caldwell was gunned down while coaching a football team at the Omagh Youth Sport Centre on February 22, 2023.
The assailants fled in a Ford Fiesta, which was later found burnt out, before reportedly switching to a black Mercedes and travelling to a house in the Deverney Park area of Omagh.
The assailants ran to the rear of a property, then left again in a white Transit Van
The attack was claimed by the New IRA and allegedly involved organised criminality.
Both weapons used remain unaccounted for.
DCI Caldwell was critically ill for some time and retired in December 2024 as a result of his injuries.
Over protracted investigations a total of 11 men have been charged, of which seven are accused of attempted murder, one of whom is Lundy.
The others face varying charges such as preparing for acts of terrorism while two are accused of belonging to the IRA.
There are also a further 12 suspects.
A defence solicitor told Dungannon Magistrates’ Court the variation was to allow Lundy to suspend his bail address to spend Valentine’s Day with his partner in a hotel in Newry.
However, prosecution counsel objected stating: “A trip to a hotel for Valentine’s Day is not a reason to vary any bail condition, especially in a case as serious as this. The defendant is charged with the attempted murder of DCI Caldwell, directing terrorism and preparing for acts of terrorism. He was remanded in custody for a time then released on High Court bail in July 2024.”
She explained a variation was granted in September 2024 when Lundy was permitted to sign bail in Belfast rather than Cookstown due to a family funeral, but was to return home by his usual 10pm curfew which he didn’t do.
Police located him at 5.20am the next day at his mother’s home in Belfast.
The prosecution said: “The reason proffered was he simply missed his bus but the obligation was on him to contact police which he did not do. Neither was there any attempt by his solicitors to contact police so he may not have contacted them either.”
She concluded: “We say he cannot be trusted to reside outside of his bail address given the previous breach.”
The defence responded: “It was slightly more complicated than that. My client attended the wrong bus station and by the time he got to the correct one, his bus had left. He also had no phone at that time.”
He continued: “It is accepted bail conditions are to mitigate risk but not to punish. It’s difficult to see how an individual going to a hotel for one night can be seen as in any way posing a risk. The requested variation is minimal in the extreme. In the interest of the defendant’s private life, the balance falls in favour or variance for one night to allow him to spend time with his partner.”
District Judge Francis Rafferty enquired: “Does he not spend time with his partner every day of the week?”
The defence replied: “I don’t want to make any cynical submissions, but it’s for Valentine’s Day.”
But Judge Rafferty refused and the case overall is due for mention again next month.
