Man sentenced to ten years in prison for sexually abusing his niece

This article contains references to rape and sexual abuse. The reader should read his opinion carefully.

By Isabel Hayes

A man who raped and sexually abused his niece as a child has been sentenced to ten years in prison.

The 49-year-old Meath man, who cannot be named to protect his niece’s anonymity, was found guilty by a jury at the Central Criminal Court of one count of sexual assault and one count of rape of his niece at locations in Meath and Louth between January 2003 and December 2006 following a trial earlier this year.

The girl was between eight and ten years old at the time of the crime, while her uncle was in his thirties.

The plaintiff in this case described to the court how she suffered flashbacks of the abuse as a teenager and was trapped in a “cycle of denial” for years, hoping it wasn’t true and afraid to tell her parents that a trusted family member had abused her.

Eventually she confided in her younger sister, who had been babysitting her uncle when he was raped, and her sister confirmed her memories. She immediately told her father and the Gardaí were informed.

The man continues to maintain his innocence and does not accept the jury’s verdicts. He is currently serving a prison sentence for money laundering offenses.

In her victim impact statement read in court earlier this month, the plaintiff – now in her twenties – said that while she was grateful for the outcome of the case, the entire legal process had been extremely stressful.

She said she had to relive the trauma “over and over again.”

“I hope I never have to be called to the witness stand again in my life,” she said, adding that it was the most horrific thing she had ever experienced. “I could hear him breathing over my shoulder.”

“I feel physically sick at the thought of this man touching me or being in the same room as me.”

Passing sentence on Friday, Judge Paul Burns noted the “life-changing” impact of the abuse on the victim. He also noted that she had found the legal process stressful and that it had delayed her recovery. He wished her well for the future and said he hoped she would continue to recover.

Judge Burns said this case involved a serious breach of trust as one of the offences had been committed in the presence of young children. He imposed a maximum sentence of 12 years.

The judge took into account the mitigating circumstances of the man’s good professional performance and his family life. He imposed a prison sentence of eleven years, with the last year suspended for three years.

A local Garda detective told Michael Delaney SC, prosecuting, that the girl remembered being in her uncle’s bedroom as a child before she lay face down on his bed and felt a “pressure” inside her.

In this context, the man was accused of rape, but the jury found him guilty of sexual assault instead.

The second incident occurred in the girl’s house when her uncle was looking after her and her siblings. He raped her in the living room with the door open while her siblings were playing in the hallway. He then asked her to bring him a tissue before wiping the girl clean.

The plaintiff’s sister was able to remember this incident and testified about it at the trial.

When the incident was reported to the police, the plaintiff’s parents also remembered that the man had been babysitting the children at the time, and the girl later asked them not to let him babysit again.

The court heard that the plaintiff began having flashbacks at the age of 15 and struggled with memories of the abuse for years before finally telling her family.

The woman said that disclosing the abuse was a relief, but she continues to have trouble sleeping and there are days when she stays in bed for hours. Despite this, she has continued her studies and career.

“I don’t like the term victim and I don’t like the term survivor,” she said. “Although I am both by definition, I am neither.” She said she has worked really hard in her life to get to where she is today, despite everything that has happened to her.

The court heard that gardaí were alerted in April 2021 and the man was arrested in July of that year. He denied any wrongdoing. He has 12 previous convictions, mainly for money laundering.

Padraig Dwyer SC, defending, said his client had two children and a good career and was using his time in custody productively and studying, the court heard. He urged the judge to be as lenient as possible.