Dungannon: Man admits charges over video of boy driving lorry

Video footage showed a boy at the wheel of a lorry on the M1 near Dungannon

A man has admitted child cruelty and driving offences after video footage was shared of a boy driving a lorry on a motorway in Northern Ireland.

The incident happened on the M1 eastbound at Dungannon in County Tyrone on 6 September 2020.

In the video one boy was seen driving a lorry while another boy stood in the cab.

Both children were aged under 10 at the time.

A man aged in his 40s from County Tyrone, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the children, was charged with nine offences.

Those included two counts of child cruelty, aiding and abetting dangerous driving, as well as aiding and abetting driving while disqualified by age.

He also faced a charge of dangerous driving on his own account.

The cruelty charges allege the accused wilfully ill-treated, neglected and exposed both children in a manner causing unnecessary suffering or injury to health.

This year the defendant pleaded not guilty to all charges at Dungannon Crown Court.

He was due to stand trial but at the most recent court hearing he changed his plea to guilty on three counts.

Those involved child cruelty, dangerous driving and aiding and abetting a child to drive dangerously.

A prosecution barrister told the court that the guilty pleas were acceptable and the remaining matters could be left on the court books.

The judge ordered the preparation of pre-sentence reports and remanded the defendant on continuing bail to attend court again in January.