Cookstown man told police they would ‘be blown up like Omagh’

Joseph Dominic Larmour, 34, from Orritor Crescent, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to charges of disorderly behaviour, resisting police, and two counts of criminal damage, arising out of the incident on May 9.

A prosecuting lawyer told the court officers were called to the William Street area at around 9.30pm in response to reports of a male throwing bottles and being aggressive towards members of the public.

The prosecutor explained the Continental Markets were on at the time and Larmour was being verbally abusive to security staff on site, shouting at one: “Come on, you fat f**ker!”

Larmour then ‘squared up’ to one of the police officers, telling him, “You can f*** off, you black b*****d!”.

As Larmour was being restrained and cautioned by the officers, he pulled an earpiece out of one officer’s ear and shouted that they would be “blown up, just like Omagh”.

Larmour continued verbally abusing the officers, and made sexual remarks to a female PSNI member.

The court was told that Larmour then spat inside the police vehicle and, as he was leaving the police station following his arrest, was seen to throw his charge sheet over the fence of the station.

Defending, Larmour’s lawyer acknowledged there had been a sectarian element to the verbal abuse from his client, but insisted Larmour “doesn’t have any negative view of the police”.

Larmour, who has a young daughter, accepted his behaviour “went far beyond what is acceptable in public”, the lawyer added.

Imposing a prison sentence of three months, suspended for two years, District Judge John Meehan told Larmour: “Overall, this was an appalling piece of behaviour.” Larmour was also ordered to pay a total of £215.44 in compensation to the Policing Board.