Photograph of Clothing Shown at Inquest

An inquest has presented a photograph depicting trainers and a top worn by Noah Donohoe on the day he disappeared.

Lauren Russell, a resident of Northwood Road in north Belfast, testified before the coroner and jury, recounting how she observed the clothing and footwear on the evening of the schoolboy's disappearance from the street.

The photograph displayed a jacket lying atop a garden wall with trainers placed neatly side by side on the street.

"It looked like 'someone had placed them there'."

Details of Noah Donohoe's Disappearance and Death

Noah Donohoe, aged 14, was found deceased in a storm drain in north Belfast on 27 June 2020, six days after he went missing.

A post-mortem examination concluded that the cause of death was drowning.

Additional Witness Testimony from Northwood Road Resident

Chris Morrow, another Northwood Road resident, informed the inquest that he noticed a bicycle positioned at the edge of a driveway on the evening of Noah's disappearance.

He further stated that he observed a black helmet in the vicinity the following day and reported it to police officers who were conducting searches in the area at that time.

When questioned about seeing Noah on the day he disappeared, while visiting a relative near the location of Noah's last sighting, Morrow responded:

"I did not".

Concerns About Local Area Safety

Morrow described that had he been aware of a culvert in the area, he would have been concerned for his own children's safety.

He acknowledged knowledge of an access point to a former play area but was unaware of what was located "behind those gates".

When asked if he would have wanted to be informed about the culvert, he replied:

"Very much so."

He added that his children "would have been told not to play in that area".

Local Pathways and CCTV Evidence

Morrow also mentioned awareness of a "cut through" area, occasionally used by some local schoolchildren, through overgrown land between Premier Drive and the general Northwood Road area where Noah was last seen.

The inquest reviewed CCTV footage from the street where Noah was last observed, focusing on identifying feet visible in the area close to the time of his disappearance.

Morrow confirmed his belief that two sets of feet shown on the footage belonged to himself and one of his daughters, who were visiting a grandparent with their family at the time.

His wife, Lauren Morrow, also provided testimony, describing her observation of the helmet and her curiosity about it:

"Why was it sitting there?"