By Olivia Kelleher
A MAN who, it is alleged, made menacing calls and death threats to the family of murdered Ballinascarthy student Cameron Blair has been remanded in custody.
Noel Barry, Cherry Tree Road, Togher, Cork city, is charged with making grossly offensive and menacing phone calls to the family of Cameron Blair, who was murdered last January.
The 46-year-old appeared before Cork District Court twice in the past week.
On Monday, Sgt Gearoid Davis applied to Judge Olann Kelleher to have Mr Barry further remanded in custody. He told the court that gardaí are waiting for directions from the DPP on the case.
Judge Kelleher remanded Mr Barry in custody and he is due to appear by video link at the court sitting on September 21st.
Last Sunday evening, Mr Barry was charged with the alleged offences and Det Garda Pat Connery told the court that Mr Barry allegedly made four phone calls to the family of the late Cameron Blair on the previous Friday evening.
The phone calls occurred between 9.30pm and midnight. The family recorded two of the calls. During the calls threats were made to Noel Blair, father of the deceased.
The Blair family were allegedly told to ‘f**k off back to England.’
An alleged threat to kill and harm Mrs Blair and her teenage son was also made. Noel Blair indicated that during the calls he was informed that his family would ‘never be safe’.
In another phone call Mr Blair reported that he was told to get his ‘Loyalist friends’ so they could ‘sort this out on the streets of Shankill Road.’
Det Garda Connery said that the family of the late Cameron Blair were deeply impacted by the threats. The brother of the deceased is now ‘alert’ for suspicious activity and the family fear for their safety.
The detective said he objected to bail for the accused, because of the seriousness of the charges.
Solicitor Eddie Burke said that his client had fully co-operated with gardaí and had voluntarily made himself available to gardaí.
Judge James McNulty asked if there was any reality in the ‘wicked’ threats that were allegedly made to the family and wondered if they arose as a result of ‘mad, bad drink talk.’
Judge McNulty said that he understood that the calls caused anxiety and undue worry to the grieving family of a kind soul’.
Free Legal aid was granted in the case as Mr Barry is in receipt of disability benefit. Judge McNulty declined to grant bail in the case and remanded Mr Barry in custody.
CIT student Cameron Blair died after he was stabbed in the neck at a house party in the city on January 16th. A teenager is serving a life sentence for the murder and has lodged an appeal in relation to his sentence.
