A Dublin man raped two sex workers and attempted to rape a third in separate incidents over an eight-month period, a court has heard.
The 28-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of rape and one of attempted rape on dates between January and August 2021. The three complainants were all working as escorts at the time and each had a profile on a website, listing their services and fees.
The man had been due to stand trial at the Central Criminal Court late last year in relation to a total of 15 counts including rape, oral rape, anal rape, false imprisonment, assault causing harm, making threats to kill or cause serious harm, and production of an article.
The court heard on Monday that a proposal was made to the Director of Public Prosecutions on the first day of the trial, which was accepted on the basis that the full facts were outlined during sentencing.
In the three separate incidents, the man contacted the complainant and made arrangements for her to come to his place of residence to perform sexual services.
On January 29th, 2021, a two-hour appointment was agreed between the man and the first complainant. When the woman arrived, the man directed her to the bedroom, then said he was going to the sitting room to get money.
He returned holding a rope and a hammer, before pushing the woman onto the bed and demanding she perform oral sex on him, without using a condom.
The woman cried and said she would call gardaí, to which he replied “fuck the gardaí”.
She pleaded with him to use a condom, but he refused and forced her to perform oral sex. She later told gardaí she was being “tapped on the soles of her feet” by the man using the hammer during this time.
He then pushed her face into the bed, tied her hands and masturbated over her, having put a condom on.
The woman was very frightened. She managed to escape then contacted a friend before making a complaint to gardaí. She was also taken to a sexual assault treatment unit.
Knife, cable ties and hammer
Gardaí carried out a search of the man's residence following this incident. A knife and cable ties were found in his pockets when he opened the door. Several items were seized during the search, including a small silver hammer.
He was not arrested following this search, with the Garda investigation ongoing. An arrangement for a two-hour visit to the man's residence was agreed by the second complainant on August 13th, 2021.
The man brought her to the sitting room and locked the door behind them. He seemed to be under the influence of drugs and asked the woman the cost of her services.
He then told her he was going to get money from the bedroom before he took out a screwdriver and put it against her neck.
He said, “don't mess with me, motherfucker” and threatened to kill her. He then dragged the terrified woman to his bedroom and shouted at her to remove all of her clothing.
He pushed her face down onto the bed, then forced her to perform oral sex, before raping her vaginally and anally. The court heard he was holding the screwdriver throughout.
The man apologised afterwards and described what had happened as “role playing”.
The complainant got dressed and when she tried to leave, he offered her a glass of wine and told her she couldn't leave until he paid her.
She gave him Revolut account details for a friend for him to make a payment.
The court heard that gardaí did not become aware of this incident until after the third complainant contacted them.
Two weeks later, on August 27th, an arrangement was made between the third complainant and the man.
He took her to the bedroom, then shouted at her to remove her clothes. He was holding a screwdriver and told her they were going to have sex, or he would kill her.
The woman started to scream and banged on the window looking for help. He threatened to kill her if she didn't shut up, then threw her onto the bed. He still had the screwdriver in his hand.
The complainant fought back, kicking and slapping, and one kick connected to his nose, causing it to bleed.
He called her a “crazy bitch” and told her to get out. The woman ran out of the man's apartment and some passerbys contacted the gardaí.
The Garda Armed Response Unit attended the scene and made a forced entry. The man was arrested and taken to a nearby Garda station.
Interviews
He was interviewed seven times during which he accepted throwing the third complainant on the bed, but said she had stolen from him.
He denied the allegations in relation to the other complainants and said consensual sexual contact had taken place. He suggested to gardaí that the women had made up the allegations.
His house was searched again on August 29th and a screwdriver was recovered. He has been remanded in custody since August 2021.
The investigating Garda agreed with Dara Foynes SC, defending, that her client has a cocaine addiction and around €5,000 worth of the drug was found in his house during the search in January 2021.
He later pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of cocaine for sale or supply for which he received a suspended sentence.
It was further agreed that the three complainants said the man appeared to be under the influence of drugs during each incident and that he made no attempt to conceal his identity.
The Garda accepted that the man was initially deemed unfit for interview and had no convictions prior to this. It was also agreed that the man was pepper sprayed when gardaí forced entry into his home.
Mr Justice Tony Hunt adjourned the case to April 8th when the victim impact statements and plea of mitigation will be heard by the court.
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.
