A judge acquitted Sean Hoey, ruling Thursday prosecutors failed to show he made the bomb that killed 29 people in Omagh in 1998. Hoey had been charged with 29 counts of murder and numerous other charges.

Kevin Winters, Hoey's lawyer, said that his client was considering suits against Victor Barker, whose 12-year-old son was killed in the blast, and the public prosecution service, The Times of London reported.

"Sean Hoey refutes completely the allegations made by Victor Barker when he persists in blaming him for Omagh," Winter said.

Families of the victims filed a lawsuit in 2001 against five men they say were responsible for the bomb. Hoey's uncle, Colm Murphy, was named in the suit but not Hoey. The Real IRA, the splinter group that claimed responsibility for the bombing, was also named as a defendant.