A 21-year-old man who sexually abused his younger sisters has been jailed for two-and-a-half years at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.
The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victims, had earlier pleaded guilty to six sample counts of sexual assault at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Waterford.
Garda Antoinette Foley told the court the offences began in 2010. She told Eilis Brennan SC, prosecuting, that 'Victim A' was between eight and 10 years old while her brother was between 12 and 14 when the offending occurred.
The court heard the offending occurred when the victims were visiting their father’s home. 'Victim A' said it happened every time she visited her father’s house, which was every second weekend.
'Victim A', who is now 17, said she had to do what he wanted, and he told her not to tell anybody, the court heard.
It began when she was eight with him touching her private parts. She said he had put his penis in her mouth at least 20 times. The offending stopped when she was 10, the court heard.
'Victim B', who is now 14, did not make a statement of complaint to Gardaí, but told her family that her brother was touching her private parts. She was between 8 and 11 and her brother was between 15 and 17 when the offending occurred.
In a victim impact statement read to the court by prosecuting counsel, 'Victim A' said the abuse ripped her family apart and her “childhood had been taken away”. “He was supposed to be my brother and protect me,” she said.
“He would tell me things like no one would love me, and I was lucky he was doing this to me,” she added.
I used to use sleep as an escape, but now I have nightmares
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'Victim A' said she now hears voices in her head, takes sleeping tablets, and is receiving therapy from the Rape Crisis Centre.
“I used to use sleep as an escape, but now I have nightmares. I can’t scream…but I can’t wake myself up,” she added.
“He was supposed to be my brother and protect me…he took away my innocence,” she said. “I can’t look at myself because I look like him – I feel physically sick.”
In her victim impact statement, also read to the court by Ms Brennan, 'Victim B' said: “I would do as he says because I was afraid if I didn’t, he’d do a lot worse to me.”
“I thought he was going to do worse and find me and ask ‘why did you tell?’”
“I was too young to understand what was happening,” she added.
'Victim B' said she bruised her knuckles from punching walls because she could not control her anger. She lost focus in school and later made a disclosure to a teacher, she added.
The court was told there were significant issues between the accused and his father.
Colman Cody SC, defending, said his client was now living in hostel accommodation having been shunned by his family.
Sentencing
Ms Justice Karen O’ Connor sentenced him five years, with two-and-a-half years suspended for a period of two years, and backdated it to June 17th for time spent in custody. She also placed him on the sex offenders register for a period of five years.
The judge said she had to be guided by previous judgements, as well as his age and immaturity at the time of the offending.
The court heard he made admissions and said he would be “pleading guilty to everything” and “would not put his sisters on the stand”. The court heard his admissions had been “particularly valuable” and he “had been convicted on that basis.”
He suffers from a heart condition, depression and suicidal ideation. The judge asked that his psychiatric report be shown to the prison governor as “he is described as being psychologically very vulnerable”.
Ms Justice O’Connor noted that when it was disclosed to both victims that he was going to plead guilty, it was of great relief to them. The judge also acknowledged he has expressed “sincere remorse”.
The judge said mitigating factors included his early admissions and guilty plea.
She also noted he had no previous convictions, has health difficulties and a psychological report said he met the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder with suicidal ideation. He had also suffered “very bad abuse as a child” from a person outside the family.
She said the aggravating factors were that his two younger siblings should have been protected by him “but [he] exerted control over them” when they were very young. She also noted that he had made threats, punched 'Victim A' in the stomach a number of times, and bruised their wrists and thighs.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.
