Case may be heard without jury
Two men from west Belfast today denied claims they tried to recruit a man to head up an active service unit in the city.
The pair were arrested following a covert surveillance operation which targeted meetings at a leisure centre in west Belfast. Both men appeared at Belfast Crown Court today for an arraignment hearing where they each denied charges of belonging to a proscribed organisation, namely the Irish Republican Army, on dates between December 31, 2019 and August 25, 2022.
The case relates to claims they met with an unnamed man, referred to as Mr X, at Whiterock Leisure Centre in September 2020. During previous court hearings, the prosecution alleged Donnelly held the role as ‘Officer Commanding the New IRA in Belfast’ while McNally was in charge of security. In court today , a prosecution barrister told Belfast Recorder Judge Patricia Smyth that a certificate had been lodged to have the defendants tried without a jury in a Diplock-style hearing. Judge Smyth said she would review the case in two weeks time.
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