Man charged with harassment after emails sent to school

Lisneal College is in Londonderry

A 62 year-old man has been charged with harassment after what police described as "malicious emails" were sent to a Londonderry school.

The Department of Education (DE) said it was made aware of threats against Lisneal College principal Michael Allen and that it "strongly condemned" what had happened.

A spokesperson for the DE said school principals had "the right to carry out their work without the fear of threat or harassment" and that it had spoken to Mr Allen and would provide assistance to him.

Lisneal College has been involved in a row over funding of a new pitch that was given without the school directly applying for the money.

Michael Allen is the principal of Lisnael College

The Belfast Telegraph first reported that the school received funding for a new pitch after a meeting with Education Minister Paul Givan and others from the Democratic Unionist Party.

The Education Authority (EA) later said the project had been planned for several years and followed "normal minor capital works procedures".

The DE added that Mr Allen had "shown exceptional leadership and dedication at Lisneal College" over the last 10 years as principal of the school.

Mr Allen has since said he has accepted the post of education adviser for the Strule Shared Education Campus in Omagh.

In a letter to parents on Monday, Mr Allen said recent events were "in no way related to my decision to accept the position".

The man who was charged is due to appear at Belfast Magistrates' Court on 14 March.