Man accused of sex assault on young girls faked own death, court told

The 24-year-old was missing for around nine hours before he got in contact with a relative, and although a suicide note was found in his car, it transpired that he had flown to Boston

A man charged with the sexual assault of two young girls faked his suicide and flew to Boston, a police detective told a court.

The Detective Constable also told Ballymena Magistrates Court that the PSNI had sent out an appeal regarding the safety and whereabouts of Curtis McCarthy as a “high risk missing person”.

The 24-year-old was missing for around nine hours before he got in contact with a relative, and although a suicide note was found in his car, it transpired that he had flown to Boston.

Having returned to Northern Ireland, McCarthy, from Joanmount Gardens in North Belfast, appeared in the dock and confirmed that he understood the 10 charges against him.

Alleged to have been committed against two girls in July 2024, McCarthy faces eight charges of sexual assault and two counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Giving evidence to the court, the detective said she believed she could connect McCarthy to each of the offences.

The investigator said while police were content for McCarthy to be released on continuing bail, given his weekend trip to Boston and “trying to fake his own suicide to avoid this court,” police were applying for extra conditions.

Releasing McCarthy on his own bail of £500 and adjourning the case to 2 July, District Judge Nigel Broderick ordered the defendant to surrender his passport and to report to police once a week.

The judge also ordered that McCarthy must reside at his home address and is barred from contacting the witnesses or complainants and prohibited from any unsupervised contact with children.

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