The inquest into the death of Belfast teenager Noah Donohoe has been adjourned until later this year after jurors’ pre-arranged holidays made it impossible to continue deliberations.

Coroner Mr Justice Rooney announced the decision just before 1am on Friday, following a late-night sitting at the Royal Courts of Justice. The jury of eight men and two women had been deliberating since Tuesday morning but had not reached the unanimous verdicts required on 10 questions.

Noah Donohoe was 14 when his body was found in an underground water tunnel in north Belfast on 27 June 2020, six days after he went missing from his south Belfast home. A post-mortem examination concluded the likely cause of death was drowning.

The inquest, which began in late January, has heard evidence from 76 witnesses and received statements from 42 other people. It has also considered maps, video footage, photographs, police logs and expert reports. Noah’s mother Fiona attended every day of the hearing.

During Thursday’s session, which started at 9.46am, proceedings moved from Laganside Courts to the Royal Courts of Justice shortly before 6pm to accommodate an extended sitting. By 11.30pm, it emerged that two jurors would be unavailable on Friday due to holidays, and two more from Saturday.

The coroner said the situation was unprecedented and left the process in uncharted waters. He said it would be wrong to rush a decision or to proceed without all jurors who had dedicated themselves to the case for more than five months.

The inquest is expected to resume in August or September. Mr Justice Rooney told the jury they remain in deliberation and must avoid outside influences, including social media speculation.

Among the findings the jury must consider are the exact date of Noah’s death and whether any errors by the PSNI or the Department for Infrastructure contributed to it. The coroner previously instructed that there was insufficient evidence to support findings of drug intoxication, assault, third-party involvement, a psychotic episode, criminal exploitation or suicide.