A woman in her twenties appeared at Strabane Magistrates Court charged with intentionally strangling a young child by applying pressure to his throat. The alleged incident took place on October 17 of last year during a social event. She faces additional charges of threatening to kill the child and twice assaulting a woman who intervened to protect him.

The woman, who is not the child's mother, remains in custody. A previous court deemed her unmanageable if released on bail. Prosecutors stated a case exists to answer, a position District Judge Alana McSorley accepted.

Psychiatric evaluation confirmed the woman has mental capacity to stand trial. She will be arraigned at Dungannon Crown Court next month while remanded in custody. She confirmed her name and understanding of the charges but called no witnesses and gave no evidence.