Anger as Omagh trial suffers false start

THE Omagh bomb trial was dramatically halted yesterday when the senior defence lawyer revealed he was unfit to proceed after leaving his sickbed.

Orlando Pownall QC disclosed he was undergoing blood tests at a London hospital.

He told Mr Justice Weir at Belfast Crown Court, where electrician Sean Hoey, 37, denies murdering 29 people killed in the Real IRA bombing: “I am unwell. I appear before you against medical advice.”