Conor Browne murder: Two men charged

POLICE investigating the murder of Conor Browne in Castlederg on Saturday have charged two men.

Both men, aged 27 and 28, are charged with murder. The 28-year-old is further charged with possession of an offensive weapon with intent to commit an indicatable offence.

They are expected to appear before Dungannon Magistrates Court later today.

Two other men, aged 28 and 31, have been released following questioning and a file will be submitted to the Public Prosecution Service.

Conor Browne, who was from the Castlederg area, died on Monday as the result of injuries sustained in the attack.

People in the town have been speaking of their shock and devastation at the death of the father of one. He was well-known and popular in the local community.

Among the messages written on the tributes was one which stated, ‘Conor you were the life and soul of the party.’

Another stated, ‘Conor you didn’t deserve this.’

Local woman, Melanie Lynch, said there was a sense of ‘shock’ within Castlederg about what had happened.

“It’s an awful shock for everyone here. This type of thing doesn’t happen in this town, and it’s just terrible that Conor has died,” she said.

West Tyrone MLA, Maoliosa McHugh. said the death represented a ‘terrible tragedy’ for the local community.

“There is profound shock and sadness for the whole community,” he said.

“Initially people were shocked at the very notion that a knife would have been used in a row in the street and they hoped that Conor would have made a speedy recovery. But there was profound shock in every respect when Conor passed away.”

SDLP MLA, Daniel McCrossan, said; “For a young father to lose his life in this way is absolutely heartbreaking and I know that people have been deeply affected by Conor’s death. Castlederg is the type of area where everyone knows each other and people can’t believe that this senseless loss of life has happened on their doorsteps.”

The PSNI have renewed their appeal for information.

Detective Chief Inspector Gibson said: “I would continue to appeal to anyone who believes they may have information which could assist us in our investigation into this young man’s death to contact us at the Major Investigation Team on 101 quoting reference 127 02/09/23.”

Alternatively you can submit information and/or upload videos, images and dash cam footage onto the Major Incident Public Portal on https://mipp.police.uk/operation/PSNI23S11-PO1