Murdered toddler 'may have been sexually assaulted'

A toddler murdered in Northern Ireland may have been sexually assaulted before her death, a court heard today.

A district judge was told that there was evidence of potential sexual injuries on the body of 15-month-old Millie Martin, as a man appeared at Omagh Magistrates' Court, charged with her murder.

Barry Michael McCarney, 30, from Sally's Wood in Irvinestown, County Fermanagh, is accused of inflicting the fatal injuries on the youngster in her home in Glebe Park, in the nearby town of Enniskillen, last week.

Millie died in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children on Friday.

Senior detective John Caldwell told magistrate Greg McCourt that medics at Erne Hospital in Enniskillen, where the toddler was first taken on Thursday night, had identified wounds consistent with a sex attack.

"They believed that she may have been sexually assaulted," the detective said.

He added that doctors in Belfast had noted bruising to the infant's "vaginal area".

Unemployed McCarney was the partner of Millie's mother, Rachel, at the time of the incident but was not the child's father.

Appearing in the dock wearing a short-sleeved grey top and white T-shirt, McCarney, who has short ginger hair, spoke only to confirm he understood the charge against him. His lawyer said he denied any part in Millie's death.

He was remanded in custody to appear at Enniskillen Magistrates' Court by video link from prison next month.