Three men, including loyalist activist Jamie Bryson and former Sinn Féin assembly member Daithi McKay, have been cleared of charges relating to misconduct in public office. Mr Bryson, 35, from Rosepark, Donaghadee was charged with conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office in September 2015. Mr McKay, 43, from Loughan Road, Dunnamanagh, was accused of misconduct in public office. Former Sinn Féin party worker Thomas O'Hara, from Lisnahunshin Road, Cullybackey, also faced a conspiracy charge. The case centred on a meeting of a Stormont committee 10 years ago, related to the National Asset Management Agency, known as Nama. Mr Bryson gave evidence at the meeting, which was chaired by Mr McKay, a Sinn Féin member of the Assembly at the time. Mr Bryson's evidence to the committee was about the alleged wrongdoing around how Northern Ireland property loans were handled by Nama. In his remarks before delivering his verdict on Mr Bryson, the judge said he believed he had "lied on oath" during part of his evidence to the court. However, the judge concluded there was no criminal conspiracy between him and Mr McKay and both were acquitted. Mr O'Hara insisted during the four-week trial that he did nothing wrong. Judge Gordon Kerr KC delivered his judgement in the case on Thursday, two weeks after the trial ended. The meeting of Stormont's finance committee took place on 23 September 2015. The prosecution argued that procedural rules of the committee were subverted, through secret messages before the meeting between the three defendants. Mr Bryson admitted sending a series of private messages to Mr McKay and Mr O'Hara but insisted they did not break any laws. Mr McKay resigned from the Assembly in 2016 after claims emerged in the Irish News and on the BBC's Nolan Show that he had "coached" Mr Bryson before the meeting the previous year. After a complaint was made to the police, and investigation began which resulted in charges and ultimately a court case. In a statement, Mr McKay's solicitor said he "has already paid a heavy price for the decision of the PPS to prosecute this case". "He was placed in a legal pressure cooker for 10 years and has had to endure a seven-week trial. "For the past decade Mr McKay has lived his life under the cloud of serious criminal proceedings and all the stress that brings."
Three men cleared of charges in Nama trial
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"Men Acquitted of Misconduct Charges in Nama Trial"
Bbc News
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TruthLens AI Summary
Three men, including prominent loyalist activist Jamie Bryson and former Sinn Féin assembly member Daithi McKay, have been acquitted of charges related to misconduct in public office that stemmed from a 2015 meeting of the Stormont finance committee. Bryson, aged 35, faced accusations of conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office, while McKay, 43, was charged with misconduct directly. A third defendant, Thomas O'Hara, also faced a conspiracy charge. The case revolved around allegations of wrongdoing concerning how the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) handled property loans in Northern Ireland. During the meeting, Bryson provided evidence regarding these alleged irregularities, which was chaired by McKay. Although the presiding judge expressed skepticism about Bryson's credibility, stating he believed Bryson had"lied on oath," he ultimately concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support the charges against the three men.
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