BALLYMENA: A 32-year-old Antrim man charged with rape had his case adjourned to 5 May for a preliminary enquiry, the legal step toward sending the matter to the Crown Court.

BALLYMENA: An 18-year-old restricted driver from Coleraine who reached 106mph on the M2 motorway was fined £200 and given three penalty points, bringing his total to six and triggering automatic licence revocation by the DVA, meaning he must resit his driving test.

BALLYMENA: A 42-year-old Belfast man of no fixed abode, charged with assaulting a female, possessing a screwdriver as an offensive weapon and possessing a controlled drug, was further remanded in custody with his case adjourned to 31 March.

COLERAINE: A 48-year-old Ballymena man accused of exchanging explicit messages with a police officer posing as a 14-year-old girl, across six charges including possessing an indecent image of a child and arranging or facilitating a sexual offence, was remanded in custody after bail was refused due to the risk of further offending, with the case adjourned to 30 March.

COLERAINE: A 30-year-old Ballymoney man accused of inciting a child to become involved in pornography, along with multiple charges relating to indecent images spanning more than a decade, was returned to Antrim Crown Court for arraignment on 20 April.

NEWTOWNARDS: A youth court case involving five teenagers charged with assault offences arising from a fight at Ballyholme beach in April last year was adjourned to 24 March after a judge criticised the prosecution for failing to serve papers on one defendant, rejecting a six-week adjournment request as unacceptable.