The long-delayed case over the attempted murder of former Detective Chief Inspector John Caldwell has made “very good progress”, a court in Omagh heard, after a third officer was assigned full-time to work through a mountain of CCTV evidence.

District Judge Conor Heaney, who had warned last month that he would “tighten oversight even further” if substantial progress was not made, listed the case for a further update on 1 December. The decision was agreed by all defence lawyers.

The attack on DCI Caldwell

Seven men are charged with attempting to murder DCI Caldwell, who was shot on 22 February 2023 while coaching a youth football team at the Omagh Youth Sport Centre in County Tyrone. He was shot in front of his young son and suffered life-changing injuries. Three other men are accused of preparing acts of terrorism.

Mr Caldwell, who was 48 at the time of the attack, later retired from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) in December 2024 on medical grounds. Police have treated the shooting as terror-related, with the New IRA as their main line of inquiry.

The CCTV backlog

The case at Omagh Magistrates’ Court has been repeatedly delayed while the prosecution works through 1,662 CCTV clips. In July, “highly relevant” CCTV evidence was discovered indicating significant planning and preparation, both on the night of the attack and during an earlier failed attempt two weeks beforehand, which is believed to have been stood down.

At the last update, the court learned that only 262 clips had been completed — about 16 per cent of the total. The prosecution explained that two officers were working on the material full-time, but said police were “not in a position to give an exact date for completion” and suggested reviews over the coming weeks or months.

Judge Heaney had expected a full update and a timeline for completion, and his warning last month appears to have taken effect.

Very good progress reported

On Tuesday of last week, the prosecution told the court of “very good progress” after a third officer was detailed to work on the CCTV clips full-time. To date, 1,012 clips have been completed, equating to 63.5 per cent of the total — an increase of 23.5 per cent since the last update.

The prosecution confirmed: “Clipping was the biggest hurdle and once it is complete the case file can be finalised. There are some other issues including around consent and redactions, but these are being worked through.”

Suggesting that a two-week adjournment would be “futile”, the prosecution instead requested a month. Judge Heaney listed the case for a further update on 1 December, which was agreed by all defence lawyers.

What happens next

Once the CCTV review is complete, the prosecution says the case file can be finalised, clearing the way for the case to move forward after years of delay. Defence lawyers have previously expressed serious concerns about the repeated adjournments. The next hearing at Omagh Magistrates’ Court is scheduled for 1 December.