The Dungannon trial of a Fermanagh man accused of causing the death by dangerous driving of 23-year-old Natasha Carruthers killed at the end of a 12-mile high speed car chase just before midnight on October 7, 2017, was halted on Tuesday for legal reasons.

This is the second time in as many weeks that the trial of Nathan Phair, nicknamed ‘Panda’, from Castlebalfour Park, Lisnaskea, has been aborted and a jury discharged.

Following legal submissions after the Crown Court trial had entered its fourth day, trial Judge Neil Rafferty QC told the jury that “legal issues had arose” and that he would have to discharge them.

“It’s just one of those unfortunate things,” said Judge Rafferty who also told the jury that he would not only discharge them as the jury for this trial, he would also discharge them from the current jury panel.

The jury had heard it was the prosecution case that at the time of the crash Phair was trying to evade two men he’d allegedly ‘swindled ... stroked’ in a failed drug deal the previous evening.

He was driving Ms. Carruthers’ blue Vauxhall Corsa car which ended up hitting a tree on the Lisnaskea Road, on the outskirts of Derrylin.

Ms Carruthers suffered catastrophic fatal injuries.

The Corsa was allegedly being chased by a black BMW driven by 28-year-old Padraig Toher, from Bawnboy, Ballyconnell, County Cavan.

He has already pleaded guilty to Ms. Carruthers’ manslaughter, and with another man, Andrew Watters, has admitted involvement in the alleged drug dealing with Phair.

A new date is yet to be fixed for the retrial.