Youth faces car abduction charges

Tammy-Lea Menagh (L) was in the car

A 15-year-old youth has appeared in court charged with stealing a car with a nine-year-old girl inside.

The teenager appeared at Belfast Magistrates Court on Thursday charged with seven offences, including child abduction, theft, driving while disqualified and taking and driving away a car.

The charges are in connection with an incident last Monday when nine year-old Tammy-Lea Menagh, from the Whitewell Road area, was driven off in her grandfather's car from York Road petrol station in Belfast.

A detective constable told the court that when the boy was charged he replied: "I didn't know she was in the car."

'Shame'

A defence solicitor said when the boy heard the girl crying he immediately stopped and let her out unharmed.

"He feels utter shame at having traumatised such a young girl and has been traumatised himself. He has vowed that nothing like this will ever happen again," the solicitor said.

Resident Magistrate Mark Hamill asked what the boy did after he realised the girl was in the car.

The detective said he stopped after 400 yards and when the girl got out she was hysterical.

"Two members of the public came to the child's assistance and brought her to the petrol station where she was re-united with her grandfather," he said.

The detective said the boy told police he had left the car - a Peugeot 306 valued at £7,000 - in the Ligoniel area but it had not been recovered.

Bail not opposed

The magistrate said the idea that the boy was traumatised by what happened was somewhat undermined by the fact that after the girl got out he drove off.

"He got over his trauma sharply," he added.

Mr Hamill said he wished to make it explicitly clear that he was releasing the boy only because the Crown was not objecting to bail.

The youth is to appear in court again on 27 November.

He was told to reports daily to the police and observe a daily home curfew of 1900 GMT or 0700 BST.