Man jailed for possessing gun used to kill LGBTQ+ activist and journalist Lyra McKee

A man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for possessing the gun police believe was used to kill journalist Lyra McKee.

Niall Sheerin, 29, from Derry, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to possession of the pistol between 11 September 2018 and 6 June 2020, reports PA.

Sheerin was handed a seven year prison sentence in Belfast on Wednesday (14 September) by Mr Justice Fowler, with an additional five years on licence.

Fowler told the court he believed Sheerin to be part of a “serious terrorist gang who posed a danger to the public”.

The judge said he was not sentencing Sheerin in connection with the murder of McKee because the “prosecution cannot establish to the requisite standard” that he was aware of the gun’s history.

PinkNews