A 52-year-old man has been charged with the murder of journalist Lyra McKee in Londonderry.<\/p>\n
He is also charged with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and professing to be a member of a proscribed organisation.<\/p>\n
Ms McKee, who was 29, was observing rioting in Derry’s Creggan estate when she was shot on 18 April 2019.<\/p>\n
The 52-year-old, who is from Derry, is due to appear at Londonderry Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Det Supt Jason Murphy said a number of individuals were involved with the gunman on the night Ms McKee was killed.<\/p>\n
“And while today is significant for the investigation the quest for the evidence to bring the gunman to justice remains active and ongoing,” he added.<\/p>\n
Ms McKee was a writer and campaigner from Belfast who had only recently moved to Derry when she was killed.<\/p>\n
She was standing near a police 4×4 vehicle on the night of 18 April 2019 when a masked gunman fired towards officers and onlookers.<\/p>\n
Regarded by many as a rising star in Northern Ireland media circles, she had written for many publications, including Buzzfeed, Private Eye, the Atlantic and Mosaic Science.<\/p>\n
She was named Sky News young journalist of the year in 2006 and Forbes Magazine named her as one of their 30 under 30 in media in Europe in 2016.<\/p>\n
The Belfast woman had signed a two-book deal with the publisher Faber and Faber, with her forthcoming book The Lost Boys due out this year.<\/p>\n
According to those who knew her best, the gay rights advocate was someone who “believed passionately in social and religious tolerance”.<\/p>\n
Her death caused widespread revulsion in Northern Ireland and further afield.<\/p>\n
Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"