Four relatives who were sexually abused by their extended family members as children have outlined how their childhoods were ruined by their abusers, whom they described as “monsters” and “devils”.
Five family members were convicted of dozens of offences relating to the sexual abuse of their four child relatives following a Central Criminal Court trial last May.
A 66-year-old man and his three sons, aged 39, 40 and 41, were convicted of a total of 115 counts of sexually abusing four family members, who were all children at the time.
The 64-year-old wife of the oldest man was convicted of assisting one of her sons after he anally raped her granddaughter and one count of assaulting the same child.
None of the five accept the verdicts of the jury and continue to maintain their innocence, their sentence hearing was told on Monday.
The three-week trial heard that the alleged offences occurred between 1999 and 2005 in various locations around the country. All of the parties are members of an extended Traveller family, the court heard.
The four complainants are the oldest couple's daughter, their granddaughter and their two nephews, whom the couple fostered for a period of time.
The 66-year-old man is already serving a 16-year sentence for sexually abusing his daughter who became pregnant with his child when she was just 17. This baby was brought up by the 66-year-old man and his wife as their own.
Shane Costelloe SC, prosecuting, told the court that this woman's three brothers each started regularly sexually abusing and raping her at around the same time as her father did.
Feel terror
In a victim impact statement read out by prosecution counsel, the woman said she will never feel normal and never feel safe as a result of the abuse.
She said she lived in fear growing up and continues to feel terror. “My childhood was like living in hell with devils,” she said.
The woman said she has both physical and emotional scars from the abuse perpetrated on her at the hands of her brothers. “They should have been there to protect me, but they were no different,” she said. She said even in court she felt “terrified” that they would come and get her either before or after court.
The woman said she is lucky to have her partner and her children, but that her kids have lost out on having uncles and cousins as a result of what her brothers did to her. “They stole my childhood.”
The older couple's grand-daughter also gave a victim impact statement, which was read out by counsel. This woman was regularly abused by the 66-year-old man – her grandfather – and two of her uncles, 39-year-old and 41-year-old men.
Her grandmother was also convicted of assaulting her and of assisting her uncle by providing her with an adult diaper in the wake of the assault and prevented her from going home and telling her parents what had happened.
“Because of these people, my childhood and innocence were stolen from me,” she said. “I still live in fear.”
The woman said she suffers from PTSD, mental health difficulties, depression, anxiety and flashbacks. She has self-harmed and had suicidal ideation.
“I am constantly looking over my shoulder and thinking they will come after me,” she said. As a result of the abuse, she said her family has been torn apart and she has difficulty visiting her parents and siblings because of her extended family.
“I now want to live a life free of fear and their actions,” she said.
In his victim impact statement, one of the brothers who was anally raped by the 39-year-old man – his cousin – said he was fostered by the family. “But I could not call them my family, they are monsters,” he said.
He said he was “starved” as a child, was not allowed go to school and was deprived of an education as a result. He said he was often cold and beaten.
Monsters
He said he often wakes up in fear during the night and has “lost count” of the number of times he has tried to take his own life. “My life was ruined,” he said. “I never had a chance in life because I lived with those monsters.”
The second brother who was also fostered by the family, said he remains in fear to this day and it never goes away. This man was regularly sexually abused by the 66-year-old man – his uncle.
“Words have not yet been invented to describe the pain (my uncle) put me through,” he said. “The betrayal killed me inside.”
He said he still lives in constant fear. “It never goes away,” he said. “I have fear in my heart and my head. I'm always nervous.”
He said he has also made numerous attempts to end his own life and has engaged in self-harm in an effort to make the pain go away. “Every moment is a struggle.”
The court heard the 66-year-old man has 185 previous convictions, including 99 for the sexual abuse of two of his daughters. The remainder are for road traffic offences, larceny, burglary and public order offences.
The 41-year-old man has 178 previous convictions, almost all for road traffic offences, including 13 convictions for hit and run incidents. He is also in custody.
The 40-year-old man has 145 previous convictions, mostly road traffic offences, while the 39-year-old man has 24 similar convictions. The 64-year-old woman has no previous convictions. These three have been on bail throughout the case.
Paul Murray SC, defending this woman, read out a letter in court from some of her other children, pleading for leniency in her case and asking that she not be jailed. Some of the complainants were visibly upset when this letter was read out and left court in tears.
Background of abuse
Mr Murray submitted his client came from a background of domestic and sexual abuse. He cited a probation report which submitted she may have been fearful of the consequences, should she speak out on behalf of the complainants.
Mr Murray said the woman might benefit from therapeutic work to help her to understand of the harm inflicted in the case.
Defence counsel for the 66-year-old man said he received no education and was illiterate.
He learned to spell his name in prison, the court heard. Defence counsel asked Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring to take into account the fact the offences he is currently in jail for occurred during a similar time to the offences in this case.
Defence counsel for the 41-year-old man said he is also illiterate and has been trying to better himself during his time in prison.
Ciaran O'Loughlin SC, for the 40-year-old man, said he had no formal education and became a father at the age of 17.
Dominic McGinn SC, for the 39-year-old man said he has a low intellectual capacity and was disadvantaged as a result of his upbringing.
Ms Justice Ring adjourned the matter for sentence on November 6th. She ordered that the three remaining family members on bail be taken into custody on Monday.
“The victims in this case all continue to feel - not surprisingly – the consequences of this abuse which will likely be lifelong,” the judge said. “Sexual abuse does not go away. It lives with the victims throughout their lives. They may come to deal with it in different ways but it never goes away.”
She noted the convicted persons have “no acceptance for the offending behaviour”.
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.
