Strabane man has charges of sexual assault on a child withdrawn

A man who was charged with sexual assault on a child has had his charges withdrawn at Derry Magistrate's Court today.

Stephen Hargan  (40) with an address at Lisnafin Park in Strabane was charged with sexual assault on a child and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity on July 16 last year.

Defence counsel Stephen Chapman said his client had been in custody for seven months before being granted bail on February 19.

He said that there had recently been 'a significant development' in the case in that DNA reports indicated that the defendant's DNA was not present at the crime scene.

A prosecutor told the court that a decision had now been taken to withdraw all the charges against Hargan.