Ronnie Nelson accused of being 'Spiderman' rioter
A man accused of rioting while wearing a Spiderman mask has gone on trial in Belfast.
Ronnie Nelson, 29, of East Way, Newtownabbey, County Antrim, is accused of throwing missiles at police during disturbances in the centre of Belfast.
He has admitted being in the area when trouble flared in August 2013 but denies being the man behind the mask.
The court heard trouble broke out after a group of loyalists mounted a protest over an anti-internment parade.
Mr Nelson, who was seen on closed circuit television wearing a light grey tracksuit with yellow stripes, is accused of covering his face with the Spiderman mask and throwing several items at officers.
A prosecuting barrister said: "There was no other person in that area wearing that tracksuit. There was only one person wearing that tracksuit - it was the defendant.
"By the time he is taking part in the riot, he had put on a mask to disguise his identity."
The investigating police officer said that after watching hours of both police footage and footage posted on youTube, the only person she could see wearing a grey tracksuit was Mr Nelson.
This, she said, led her to conclude that Mr Nelson was the man in the Spiderman mask.