Noah Donohoe: the latest news is very bad

[MNettersForNoahAndFiona]

Many Mumsnetters will have already seen and kindly supported my threads and those of others about the disappearance and death of young Noah Donohoe in Belfast in June 2020. For those who haven't, Noah's naked body was retrieved from a drain after he had been missing for 6 days. Two years later, his grieving mother Fiona, with her sister Niamh at her side, is still having to fight for the truth about her adored son's disappearance and death and for justice for him.

Yesterday, Fiona was given official notice by the government/NIO that a Public Interest Immunity Certificate has been granted. It was signed by the new Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Shailesh Vara, MP for North West Cambridgeshire. This means that the police/PSNI are allowed to keep hundreds of pages of information from their botched investigation into the disappearance and death of this innocent and precious child secret. It was received by the police/PSNI and Crown Solicitors Office on the 19th July and his mother was not told for over a week.

Mr Vara was appointed after Brandon Lewis resigned from Boris Johnson's cabinet. He has only been in his post as NI Secretary for two weeks. This is not a good start. Signing the PII Certificate so swiftly indicates to me that he has not taken due time and care to learn all the facts in Noah's case. I think anyone who concludes from this that Mr Vara is just a government and police puppet could be forgiven.

For those Mumsnetters not in Northern Ireland who believe that PII Certificates don't concern you, a PII Certificate application from the police/PSNI protected Robert Howard, a known prolific and violent child killer and rapist. It allowed him to travel to England, Scotland and Ireland. He was only brought to justice when he raped and killed a child in Kent. This is only one example of many.

If you are not outraged, then you have not been paying attention. What can you do? Please think about this and do what you can. Please join us in raising awareness about Noah on social media, with your own government representatives and mainstream media. If you want to contact Shailesh Vara directly about Noah's case:
members.parliament.uk/member/1496/contact
Email at NIO: [email protected]
He is also on Twitter:
twitter.com/ShaileshVara

Here is a factual and reliable pinned Twitter thread for people new to Noah's story or wanting to know more:
mobile.twitter.com/MarymoBelfast/status/1370453351616425985
Here is Fiona's podcast:

Here is a Channel 4 News report: www.channel4.com/news/noah-donohoe-family-seek-answers-over-belfast-teenagers-death And please, if you haven't already, do still join the 309,146 people who have showed they care by signing Fiona's petition. Link in the OP of this thread: www.mumsnet.com/talk/petitions_noticeboard/4573833-noah-donohoe-his-mothers-fight-for-the-truth-and-justice-please-help-stop-the-police-coroner-and-brandon-lewis-from-keeping-investigation-files-into-the-death-of-a-child-secret-thread-3?

Thank you sincerely for reading and for your support. 💙

TLDR:
As Marion Wright Edelman said, if we don't stand up for children, then we don't stand for much. Shame on you, Shailesh Vara. AIBU?

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Donal MacIntyre 13th July 2023
"Team - Another Thank you
You have been amazing and I hope that our updates have kept you up to speed with our work and our campaign. I wanted to let you know that tomorrow on social media we will release a short video showing the interior of the storm drain Noah was found in and part of the journey he was believed to have made on the way to his tragic death. It is poignant and worth meditating on. We are heading toward £110,000 and we are so grateful with 22 days left to go. Many of you are also organising additional fundraising initiatives and we are so thankful for that. In time, I hope to thank you all personally but I hope that by our small videos, updates and our daily bite size reviews of the case you will appreciate our drive to deliver upon all of our promises.
Thank you all again
Donal"

💙Crowdfunder, The Noah Donohoe Independent Investigation Fund
Currently: £106,640
Target: £150,000 💙

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Donal MacIntyre 17th July 2023
Producer and Investigative Reporter
"Huge Progress - Thanks to you All!
We have nearly reached 75% of our target to finish the investigation and film of the investigation. We have already been working for over two and a half years and your support is making this happen and will get us across the line - I hope from our videos which have had over a million views that you can see even more clearly the need for an independent investigation. The Inquest will only ask limited questions and useful as it will be, it cannot and will not be the full story and final verdict. Thank you for putting your trust in us - in our team of investigators - to help give Noah the investigation he deserved and to future proof the investigations into other missing children in the years ahead.
Donal"

On Crowdfunder: The Noah Donohoe Independent Investigation Fund
Currently: £110,405
Target: £150,000
19 days left 💙

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Donal MacIntyre
Producer and Investigative Reporter
20th July 2023
"Terrific Progress
Well done to you all! The support keeps coming in. And there are many of you who are organising your own fundraising events, some of which will fall outside of the Crowdfunding period - don't worry - just contact us - leave a message and we will let you know how to donate the funds and support the project when this very special operation is over. We are heading towards £120,000, which is amazing in and of itself, and our full goal of £150,000 is entirely within our gift. Thank you all again and we'll keep you abreast of our progress over the next two and a half weeks.
Donal"

Crowdfunder: The Independent Noah Donohoe Investigation Fund update:
Current contributions: £119,140
Target: £150,000
Days left: 14

I get paid on Friday, posting to mark my place so I can remember what to Google. Solidarity to Noah’s mum and loved ones.

Which platform is the crowdfund on please

Direct Links to the UK website 'Crowdfunder' are not allowed by Mumsnet but if you search on Crowdfunder for 'Noah Donohoe' or search online for 'Crowdfunder The Noah Donohoe Independent Investigation Fund' you should easily find Donal MacIntyre's page @Parsley1234 💙

Crowdfunder update:
£122,433
81% of £150,000 target
11 days left
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Thank you for your posts @hedgehoglurker @TimeAfterTime1 @RhannionKPSS @CrapBucket @justgettingthroughtheday @HikingforScenery @DuesToTheDirt @Lndnmummy @Feduppluckingmychinhairs @WaveyGodshawk @Quitelikeit @Tessisme @msssm @stealtheatingtunnocks 💙

Thank you donated and posted on Facebook and stories let’s hope it works ♥️

Payday donation made 💙

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Thank you @hedgehoglurker @WaveyGodshawk @Parsley1234 - all bumps, donations and/or sharing very welcome.💙

To everyone, please only donate what you can realistically afford 💙

Donal MacIntyre
"Nearly There!
We knew there was a groundswell of support out there for an objective independent review and investigation of the Noah Donohoe case. And you have spoken in your thousands - nearly five thousand at this stage. We will do you proud. We have 10 days to go and I know that we can reach £150,000 to finish our investigation and the film of the investigation and deliver it then to you. Thank you for being part of this unique and special community. Please continue to spread the news and share the links and I am sure that we can do it! We do know that there are fund raisers and some terrific events which are on our last day - August 5th and these funds will be also counted. Feel very proud you are all making this happen. As ever keep an eye out on social media for more videos, bite size reviews of the case and all updates.
Many Thanks
Donal"

On Crowdfunder: The Independent Noah Donohoe Investigation update:
£123,293
82% of £150,000 target
10 days left
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Donation made

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Thank you @Rosebud21 @hedgehoglurker 💙

26th July 2023
On Crowdfunder: The Independent Noah Donohoe Investigation Fund update:
"Last Ten Days!
We are nearly at £125,000. It is hard to imagine achieving this - you simply have driven this by supporting, donating and by sharing this campaign with your friends and loved ones. I think all of us are all connected to Noah's case in a special way and unique manner and this is driving us.
I want to make a special mention to those who have donated twice and in some cases three times. To you all - we are honoured and humbled by these donations and are fuelled by your faith in us.
I am confident we will reach and exceed our target. As noted at the start of our campaign anything over £150,000 will be spent on specialist storm-drain reconstructions and anything received beyond our needs will be donated to children's charities in Northern Ireland including the Noah Donohoe Foundation. You are all ensuring that we can finish our investigation and the film of our investigation after more than two and a half years work. Let's keep going until 3pm on Saturday August 5th when this crowdfunding appeal will come to a conclusion. We will be having a supporters fund raising dinner in the Europa Hotel in October and the details of that I hope we can announce next week. Before I sign off - many of those who have donated are also running events to support the investigation and we acknowledge that effort and are immensely grateful. Have a great and safe week and thanks so much on behalf of the team!
Donal MacIntyre
Investigative Reporter and Producer"

Donal MacIntyre
27th July 2023
On Crowdfunder - The Independent Noah Donohoe Investigation Fund Update:
"Heading towards 90% with 9 days to Go! £130,000!
A Record for Any Documentary Investigation
Your record breaking contributions are delivering headlines and will change the way public interest films are made and funded. It is simply remarkable. It is a really intimate relationship - between the donor and the producers. Well done - please feel proud. We are all part of a nurturing and supportive community which seeks to support others and to investigate their legitimate concerns over the death of a loved one. Noah was a special and remarkable child and while we are in the early stages of our investigation we can say that he DID NOT get the investigation he deserved. That is our job and you are giving us the tools to make it happen. Let's keep driving until August 5th at 3PM when this campaign comes to an end - but for now we are all so proud of you all and delighted to be working together on this very important project.
Donal"

On Crowdfunder: The Independent Noah Donohoe Investigation Fund Update:

Donal MacIntyre
Investigative Reporter and Producer
28th July 2023
"90% Beckoning!
Every milestone we hit - we are breaking records - this is the most successful crowdfunding appeal for an investigative documentary on the platform - it is stunning - what is remarkable is that in a mirror image of one's relationship with a broadcaster as a licence fee payer - in this case - you directly are paying for a documentary and an investigation you want - one that you are making happen and on a subject dear to your heart. We will not let you down and I hope that our everyday videos and updates remind you and reinforce in your minds our commitment and determination to ask all the right questions - the tough ones - and to follow the facts to a robust and revelatory documentary that reaches parts that the inquest and other vehicles simply won't reach.
Keep up the great work and keep sharing!
We are eternally grateful.
Best
Donal"