Inquest finds Stormont's Department for Infrastructure "erred" in its maintenance of the entrance to a tunnel where Noah Donohoe was found dead
The jury finds it was possible, but not probable, that failings by the department contributed to his death
Jurors also find there were no police failings that contributed to the 14-year-old's death but identify 13 failings during the investigation
The schoolboy went missing after leaving his south Belfast home in June 2020, sparking extensive searches across the city
His body was found nearly a week later in a tunnel system in north Belfast
A post-mortem examination concluded the cause of Noah's death was drowning
The jury reached a unanimous verdict after five days of deliberations. They had 10 questions to answer
Two questions were about when and where Noah died - they say it was between 19:00 and midnight on Sunday 21 June 2020, and in the lower reaches of the culvert or underground tunnel
An inquest verdict at last but many mysteries remain about Noah's death, writes BBC News NI's Kevin Sharkey
Noah's disappearance more than six years ago captured the public's interest - why did the inquest take so long and how was it different to others?
You can follow more of our coverage of the Noah Donohoe inquest findings on Evening Extra, which has just started on BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Sounds.
They will have our reporter Gráinne Connolly, who was in court, plus the background to the case and a legal expert to explain how the inquest worked.
You can listen here.
Murphy continues "it should be a basic minimum" that DfI "prevent access by children to deadly culverts".
"It should be a basic minimum that when a child of our society goes missing the PSNI do all in their power to find out what happened to him," he says.
He adds: "When a child dies, it cries out for an explanation.
"It is an affront to public justice that a grieving mother has had to fight for years for answers, that a grieving mother has had to fight to expose the many and repeated failings in the police investigation."
He says the jury's findings are as a result of Fiona Donohoe "tireless pursuit" of information.
"It is completely wrong that when a mother has had to investigate her own son's disappearance and death, that is left to the PSNI and DfI alone, we would never have any answers at all."
He is now finished his statement.
Niall Murphy has now began reading out his own statement.
He says Fiona has faced "indignity after indignity" since Noah disappeared and died six years ago, most often at the hands of those who she trusted to bring her son home.
Murphy says Fiona has sat "stoic" in the courtroom as evidence was read out and "witnessing repeated attempts by the Department for Infrastructure and the PSNI to defend their respective positions".
"Their high-handed conduct serves only to humiliate and retraumatise, it would break most people," Murphy says.
He continues to pay tribute to Fiona's resilience throughout the inquiry.
Fiona's statement finishes with her thanking the jury for their "dedication", the coroner, for his "compassion" and Noah's friends for attending the inquest.
The statement continues: "Answers of 'I don't know and I can't recall' permeated the evidence heard at this inquest.
"It's easy to say you don't know when you failed to find out."
It adds that the evidence the jury heard revealed an "inventory of repeated failings" by the DfI and PSNI.
"Noah deserved better," Fiona says.
Niall Murphy is Fiona Donohoe's solicitor
Fiona's statement says to deflect from their own failings, the PSNI and DfI had "sought to blame Noah".
She adds that the inquest has exposed a "culture of institutional defensiveness" in the heart of those public bodies.
Fiona says she will never accept that Noah's death did not merit a "full and fearless" investigation.
Niall Murphy is now reading a statement on behalf of Fiona Donohoe.
It says Noah was Fiona's "greatest gift" and that he should still be here.
It adds Fiona "came seeking answers" and she leaves with "one clear answer".
"Noah was failed," by the DfI and PSNI the statement says.
Noah's mother, Fiona Donohoe, has left the court.
Her solicitor Niall Murphy will now read a prepared statement to the media.
Stay with us as we bring it to you.
Kevin Sharkey
BBC News NI
It's been more than six years since teenager Noah Donohoe was found dead 600m into a freezing underground water tunnel in Belfast.
His death – and the speculation over what happened to him in the week between his daylight disappearance and the discovery of his body – became a huge news story that provoked countless unanswered questions.
Now, after an inquest and months of exhaustive hearings and long deliberations by a jury, there is a verdict – but much is still unknown about what happened to Noah.
Why, the night before he disappeared, did he leave his home in the middle of the rain-soaked night? Where did he go? Why did he come back 34 minutes later, as documented by CCTV, barefoot?
Read more here.
Video showing Noah's final journey from the Ormeau Road to Northwood Drive has been released by the coroner.
It shows him cycling through through the city centre and along York Road before turning into Northwood Drive off the Shore Road.
CCTV released shows Noah's final journey
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
In question 10, the jury was asked if there were any other factors which had not been mentioned and did not cause or contribute to Noah's death, but did impact the ability of the inquest to reach a conclusion on aspects relevant to his death.
The jury said yes and identified 13 of these, related to the PSNI and the DfI.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
Question nine was also split into two parts.
It asked if it was probable or possible that any error of the Police Service for Northern Ireland in its response to the report that Noah was missing more than minimally, negligibly or trivially contributed to his death.
The jury answered no to both parts, with their reasoning being the time of Noah's death.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
Question eight asked about the Department for Infrastructure's management of the culvert and it was split into two parts.
In question eight 8A, the jury was asked if it was probable that any error of the Department for Infrastructure in its management of access to the culvert more than minimally, negligibly or trivially contributed to Noah's death.
They said no.
In question 8B, the jury was asked if it was possible that any error of the Department for Infrastructure in its management of access to the culvert more than minimally, negligibly or trivially contributed to his death.
The jury said yes.
They said the department erred in the management of the culvert and by not identifying the area around the entrance as a location the public could possibly access. There were no warnings around the entrance.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
In question six the jury was asked to determine the time and date of Noah's death. They were allowed to give a time range.
They said he died between 19:00 and midnight on Sunday 21 June 2020.
In question seven they were asked where he died.
They found it happened in the lower reaches of the Premier Drive culvert.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
Question five asked the jury to explain why Noah behaved the way he did after he left his house on 21 June.
There were a number of things which the coroner told them they were not able to include in their findings.
These were: That he was under the influence of drugs, that he was assaulted by anyone after he left his house, that a third party was responsible for his death, that he was going through a psychotic episode, that he was a victim of child exploitation or that he took his own life.
The jury ultimately said the evidence was insufficient to reach a conclusion.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
Question three asked the jury what the medical cause of Noah's death was.
They found that he had drowned.
Question four asked what Noah did after he left his house.
The jury found that after Noah left his home on his bike on Sunday 21 June 2020 he cycled on University Street and along the Ormeau Road before travelling through the city at a normal pace for a 14-year-old boy.
During this he became separated from his backpack.
From Cityside he travelled along North Queen Street past Castleton Park where his phone was later found.
He then fell from his bike and while he continued along his journey he lost his green coat.
Noah then went onto Northwood Crescent where he removed his black helmet, and then onto Northwood Road where he removed his clothing.
From there, the jury found, Noah entered the culvert from the rear.
Gráinne Connolly
BBC News NI
Question two asked the jury to summarise the scenario in which Noah's death occurred.
The jury said Noah left his home at about 17:40 BST on 21 June 2020 on his bike with his backpack containing his laptop, schoolbook and the Jordan Peterson book 12 Rules for Life.
After not contacting home he was reported missing by his mum at about 21:45 on 21 June 2020 and was identified as a high-risk missing person on 22 June.
A large scale search operation began and involving the PSNI and public.
His bike and clothing were then found outside Northwood Road in the city.
Enquirires identified CCTV showing his journey from the Ormeau Road, through the city centre and then to Northwood Road where he was seen discarding his bike.
Eye witnesses saw him falling off his bike on York Road/Queen street and his phone was found by a member of the public.
Police also recovered his backpack, which he became separated from on the junction of York Street and Cityside.
Some of his items such as his green coat have never been recovered.
Noah was found in a tunnel at 10:40 on 27 June, where he was declared dead.
Further enquiries identified footage of Noah leaving his home 03:34 and returning at 04:08 on Sunday 21 June 2020.
As we reported below, the jury had to answer 10 questions in coming to their findings.
The first of those questions was a formality - stating what Noah's full name was.
We'll now run through their answers to the other nine questions.
Kevin Sharkey
BBC News NI
The coroner has started delivering the verdict.
He says the jury found Stormont's Department for Infrastructure (DfI) "erred" in its maintenance of a culvert entrance close to where Noah Donohoe was last seen alive.
The jury found that the DfI failed to identify a hazard at the site and there was no warning sign.
The jury also found that neither the DfI nor PSNI contributed in any way to the schoolboy's death.
However, as well as the finding against the DfI, the jury listed 13 failings by the PSNI during the police investigation.
The nine jury members, who had 10 questions to answer, returned their verdict today at the end of an inquest which began in January.
As we reported earlier, we have been told the jury has reached unanimous findings.
The coroner is now considering those findings before he enters the court to deliver the verdict.
We are not sure how much longer that will take, but we will keep you updated as soon as the coroner returns.
