Evil stepfather robbed his victim of “innocence and trust” when he raped her on her 15th birthday

A victim has told how her evil stepfather took away her “innocence and trust” when he raped her on her 15th birthday during a family holiday.

Kim Jordan yesterday waived her anonymity so that 55-year-old Anthony Byrne could be named after a jury found him guilty of raping her in Majorca and again in an incident at a house in Drimnagh, south Dublin.

The court heard that Ms Jordan “wanted to die” when Byrne raped her in her hotel room after he tried to play “strip poker” with her. In a victim impact statement given to the court, Ms Jordan said Byrne had broken her “physically, mentally and emotionally”.

She added: “I thought I was your daughter, I thought you loved me. Today I stand here as an adult, 22 years after you raped me on my 15th birthday and took not only my virginity but my innocence and my trust. I am serving and continue to serve a life sentence for what you did to me.”

At a sentencing hearing before Judge Mary Ellen Ring, Garda Thomas Wafer of Sundrive Garda Station confirmed that the accused had been found guilty of two counts of rape before a jury at the Central Criminal Court on May 15. The court heard that Byrne, who pleaded not guilty, had been found guilty by a jury of raping his stepdaughter during a family holiday in Majorca, Spain in 2002 and a second time at the family home in Rafters Avenue, Drimnagh.

Garda Wafter agreed with the prosecution that Byrne had a relationship with the victim’s mother and that she eventually made a complaint to Garda in 2018. The court heard that Ms Jordan was in Mallorca with her stepfather and family members when they went to the pool and then returned to the apartment with him.

She said she had gone to take a shower when Byrne followed her, “dropped his shorts” and pulled back the curtains before telling her: “You’re not finished. I’m going to wash you.” Ms Jordan said Byrne pushed her into a corner and washed her with a sponge while she was naked.

She said she was “crying uncontrollably” and “just wanted to die at that moment.” She told the jury that she quickly got out of the bathroom but felt “vulnerable” and “had nowhere to go at that point.”

Byrne, who was 33 at the time, came out with a towel and told the victim he would dry her off, the court heard. The court heard Ms Jordan had her underwear halfway up when Byrne put his hand on her shoulder and laid her back on the bed.

She said she lay there “howling with laughter” as he got on his knees, pulled out his penis and inserted it into her vagina. Ms Jordan said she became “completely numb” and to this day has a vivid memory of the woodchip wallpaper in the hotel room.

She told the jury that while this was happening she just lay there and “wished she was dead”. She was “horrified” and Byrne panicked, licked her clean and told her he was “so sorry” after he ejaculated.

Ms Jordan had told the jury that they later went out for dinner and Byrne “acted like nothing had happened”. When they returned to the room she shared with Byrne, she was “awake and crying”.

The court heard that months passed before the next incident occurred when the defendant came into her bedroom at the house in Drimnagh, took out his penis and tried to insert it into her vagina. There was a knock on the door and Byrne, who had no erection, was startled, the court heard.

Ms Jordan said Byrne “never spoke to me about the incident again.” Prosecutors reported at the sentencing that Ms Jordan told her mother about it and said that while she was showering she thought she saw a video camera filming her from the back bedroom she shared with her sister.

Ms Jordan then confronted Byrne and he told her: “You can say what you want. It’s your word against mine.” The court heard that Byrne, who has no previous convictions, “admitted he had sexual intercourse with Ms Jordan in Spain” but believed it was consensual.

Byrne’s defence said he had been in a new relationship since 2016, had two young children and had led a “crime-free, guilt-free life” since then. Byrne’s position at the time, the court said, was that he had been having “an affair with his partner’s daughter”.

The defence lawyer said it was “unfortunate” that Byrne had used such language as he was “not the most eloquent person”. He added: “I don’t think he meant anything by it.” However, Judge Ring said she did not know how Byrne’s statement could be interpreted any other way, “regardless of his eloquence”.

The court was presented with character references, including from Byrne’s current partner and his sister. The court concluded that both offences could carry a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Judge Ring said she needed time to consider the case and would give a verdict next Wednesday.

In her victim impact statement, Ms Jordan, who was moved to tears, said that when Byrne came into her life he was her “best friend and someone I looked up to for most of my childhood”. She added: “I didn’t know his plan was to use me for his sick sexual desires and ruin my life.”

She said her home had become a “scary place” and she had to “always be on guard.” She described Byrne as “calculated” and said he “taught me to believe that if I spoke out against your abuse, our family would be torn apart.”

Ms Jordan added: “They left me feeling trapped, voiceless and with no one to turn to. The mental, physical and emotional pain is still a daily struggle for me.

“I am glad to be standing here today and have found my voice to protect my younger self and to hold you accountable for the childhood and the many years that you so callously stole from me.” Ms Jordan also spoke of Byrne’s testimony at the trial, during which he “stated that you yourself were a victim in this case and claimed that this was all a ploy to somehow ruin your life.”

She said it was “absolute madness” and “unfortunately proves once again that you feel no remorse for your actions.” She added: “Unfortunately, I am no longer the child you can use for your disgusting pleasures. I will no longer keep your sick secret. It is now your burden to bear.”

“What you did to me broke me physically, mentally and emotionally. You cost me my job, my career and, for a time, my closest relationship. I had nothing. I felt worthless. I was unemployed and on sick leave for five long years, losing my income, my independence and my joy for the future.

“You have turned the people I once called my aunts, uncles and cousins ​​against me with your lies and withheld the truth from me for 26 long years.” She told the court that she had undergone “intensive” therapy and takes daily medication for depression and anxiety.

Ms Jordan added: “I am tormented by the memories you left me and to this day I have regular nightmares. The trauma of what you did to me has destroyed my desire to have children.

“I have a hard time trusting anyone and I could never bring a child into the world knowing first hand that people like you exist. I honestly believe this will haunt me until the day I die and my life will never be the same as it should have been.

“Today I should have finally celebrated a victory, finally justice. You could have spared us this further pain by taking responsibility for your actions and pleading guilty. Instead, you only showed what a father should never be like.

“Not only did you ensure that I was tortured again by having me called to the witness box in court, where I was questioned and cross-examined in great detail, I felt humiliated and ashamed when you portrayed me as some kind of teenage seductress.”

Ms Jordan also said she once “adored” Byrne and “never wanted anything from you except for you to love me like a father should.”

She added: “I know now that you cannot love anyone unconditionally but yourself. Now that you are standing here before us, I can honestly say that I feel nothing but shame and regret for having loved you, trusted you and believed in you.”

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