A 41-year-old man accused of murdering his wife in Fermanagh last year, is to challenge some of the evidence which led to his arrest and charging.

Defence lawyers made the disclosure during a scheduled committal hearing held at Enniskillen Magistrates court this week.

Stephen McKinney, who has an address in Lifford County Donegal but who is remanded to bail to an address in Fintona County Tyrone, was charged with murdering his wife, Lu Na McKinney, during a boating holiday in Fermanagh with their two children.

McKinney has maintained his innocence throughout and told police that his wife had fallen overboard and that he had jumped into the Lough and attempted to save her. McKinney asserted that his two children remained asleep during the incident.

At the committal hearing this week McKinney’s legal team said that having reviewed the evidence and having consulted with McKinney that a decision had been taken to challenge some of the evidence.

The public prosecutor told the court that a number of days would need to be scheduled for a judge to read the almost 2,500 pages of evidence and that a preliminary investigation would need to follow.

The defence contended that they felt it may take a shorter duration as the issues were limited to just a few pieces of evidence.

At an earlier hearing it was revealed that police obtained statements from marina staff, expert witnesses, work colleagues of the deceased and telecommunications evidence, and that as a result McKinney was arrested.

The case was adjourned for two weeks at which point a date would be fixed for the preliminary investigation.