Mother of Four Says Pipe Bomb Attack Was Mistaken Identity

A mother of four believes her home was targeted in a pipe bomb attack due to mistaken identity. The device was placed through the letterbox of Nicola Nugent's home on Stanhope Street in north Belfast around 3 a.m. BST on Friday. The explosion triggered the home's fire alarm and caused damage to the front door and hallway.

Nugent and her four children, the youngest of whom is a one-year-old, were able to escape the house unharmed. "I was just woke up with an explosion at just after three o'clock. [I] jumped up, trying to get the kids out," Nugent recounted. "There was so much smoke so we couldn't really see what they were doing."

She stated with certainty that she believes the attack was a case of mistaken identity and expressed that she was still in shock and did not want to contemplate what could have occurred.

Following the incident, homes on Stanhope Street were evacuated, and police established cordons as Army bomb experts began their investigation. Sinn Féin assembly member Carál Ní Chuilín condemned the attack, describing it as an "attempt of murder" and emphasizing the family's luck in escaping without injury. Ní Chuilín appealed to anyone with information to contact the police.