An 82-year-old man who sexually assaulted a man with an intellectual disability has been jailed for two years.
Denis Carey, of Garden Field, Dromcollogher, Limerick, pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual assault of the man over a two-month period from May 2019.
Cork Circuit Criminal Court heard Carey befriended the complainant, who cannot be named, who thought he was a “nice old man”.
Sgt Deirdre Tuohy said the assaults started with the retired bus driver putting his hand on the man’s leg, before moving on to sexual assault.
Sgt Tuohy said the victim, aged in his 30s, told a neighbour that “something was not right” about Carey's behaviour. The neighbour told the victim's family, who then reported the abuse to gardaí.
In a victim impact statement, the victim said he was relieved that Carey had entered a guilty plea as it meant he would not have to give evidence at a trial. He said in the aftermath of the incident he experienced nightmares about what had occurred.
I thought he was a nice old man
“He took advantage of me. I was too scared to speak up. I thought he was a nice old man.
“I was disgusted at letting him do these bad things. He told me not to tell anyone. I was so afraid I hated myself. I feel better now.”
Carey, though his barrister Elizabeth O’Connell SC, said he was aware the complainant “had special needs and was not a normal consenting adult”.
Meanwhile, Judge Helen Boyle heard that Carey, who is a father of four, had appeared in court in December 2020 where he was given an 18-month suspended sentence for the sexual exploitation of a child. The offence occurred during the same period as the offences against the man with an intellectual disability.
During the hearing of that case at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, Det Garda Yvonne Cashman gave evidence that the offence took place when a 15-year-old schoolboy went into a public toilet in North Cork on April 30th, 2019.
Carey asked the boy to participate in oral sex and made sexual gestures, but the boy ran out of the toilets and went home. He told his father what had happened, and the father and son returned to the public toilets to find that Carey was still parked in the area.
When he saw the boy, he moved his car and started to drive away, but the father and son followed him for a period.
Carey made a voluntary statement at a Garda station where he denied any wrongdoing relating to the incident with the boy. Upon his arrest on July 21st, 2019, he admitted asking the teenager for oral sex. However, he denied making sexual gestures.
Insight
Defence barrister Elizabeth O’Connell said it was a “bizarre situation”, noting that her client did not get his first conviction until he was 78-years-old.
She told Judge Boyle that Mr Carey, who is now estranged from his wife, was showing a little more insight and was developing a sense of responsibility in relation to his offending behaviour.
Judge Boyle said an aggravating factor in the case was that Carey had befriended the injured party who thought he was a “nice old man”. She said Carey had bought the man food and made him feel that he was trustworthy.
Judge Boyle also noted Carey was aware the man had a learning disability.
The judge praised the victim, whom she said had delivered an “eloquent victim impact statement”, and acknowledged that Carey had inflicted serious damage on the complainant.
“You (Carey) took advantage of him, and he was afraid to speak up. He had anger, pain and fear. He was afraid and hated himself.”
Judge Boyle said the injured party “was starting to live his life” again having attended counselling in relation to the incident.
She noted the complainant, in his victim impact statement, had thanked not only his mother but also the investigating garda in the case, who took his statement and “listened and never judged”.
Judge Boyle said the offence for which Carey was before the court was “more serious” than his previous offence, but said his guilty plea was a mitigating factor in the case, as was the fact that Carey was displaying “a little more insight” in to his behaviour than when he was last before the court.
Judge Boyle said she was also aware that Carey was estranged from his wife and some other family members, and now lives alone, only leaving home to collect his pension.
The judge jailed Carey for four years, suspending the last two years of the sentence.
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.
In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.
