Further delay in case against men charged over Caldwell shooting

THE date for committal proceedings in the long-running case concerning the attempted murder of Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell has once more been pushed back.

Omagh Magistrates Court heard this week that following the recent arrests of Liam Robinson (46), from Ardstewart, Stewartstown, and Caoimhin Murphy (25), of Altowen Park, Coalisland, the prosecution file has again been delayed.

The two men join 11 others already before the court, all charged with preparation and attempted murder in relation to the gun attack on DCI Caldwell at Youth Sport in Omagh on February 22, 2023.

At a previous update earlier this year, the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) indicated that a committal date would be set by the end of summer 2025, with all defendants’ files to be sent to the Crown Court thereafter.

However, this week a PPS representative told the court that this timeline was no longer achievable due to the most recent arrests.

They explained that because of ‘significant developments’ last month, the full case file cannot yet be completed.

The PPS added that files for Robinson and Murphy should be ready in October, and that preparation of the other case files would continue in the meantime to ‘speed things up’.

The case was adjourned until September 30 for a further update, when the PPS is expected to provide more detail on a possible timeline.