A 52-YEAR-OLD MAN has been charged with the murder of Lyra McKee, who was shot dead in Derry last year.

The 29-year-old journalist died after shots were fired in the Fanad Drive area of Creggan in Derry during rioting on 18 April.

The New IRA claimed responsibility for her death, and offered its “full and sincere apologies to the partner, family and friends of Lyra McKee for her death”.

The man, who is from the city, was arrested yesterday and taken to Musgrave Serious Crime Suite, is also charged with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and professing to be a member of a proscribed organisation.

The man was charged by the PSNI’s Major Investigation Team. He will appear at Derry Magistrates Court tomorrow, 13 February.

Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy said:

“I have always said a number of individuals were involved with the gunman on the night Lyra was killed, and while today is significant for the investigation the quest for the evidence to bring the gunman to justice remains active and ongoing.”

Yesterday, the PSNI arrested four men aged 20, 27, 29 and 52, in connection with the investigation into the murder of Lyra McKee. 

Following the arrests, senior investigating officer Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy renewed a public appeal for information.

“I have always believed that some people within the community know what happened and who was involved,” Murphy said.

“We saw wide scale revulsion after Lyra was murdered and I remain determined to work with the community and local policing to convert that revulsion into tangible evidence to bring those who murdered Lyra to justice.”

The killing of McKee led to an outpouring of grief in Northern Ireland, Ireland and the rest of the UK. It put pressure on politicians in Northern Ireland to agree to restore the province’s power-sharing institutions, which have since been reestablished.

Comments have been closed as a case is due before the courts.