Man jailed for raping sister over number of years

This article contains references to sexual assault and rape that some readers may find distressing. Reader discretion is advised.

By Niamh O’Donoghue

A woman who was raped by her older brother when she was a child disclosed the abuse to her family on the night of the Late Late Toy Show in 2020 because she could not face another Christmas with him at the table.

The 36-year-old man was handed a global sentence of nine years with the final year suspended for the rape and sexual assault of his younger sister at the Central Criminal Court on Monday.

The victim was approximately seven when the abuse started in 2001 while the man was then 14 and was around 20 years old when the abuse came to end in 2008.

The man, who cannot be named to protect his victim’s identity, was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury of two counts of anal rape and two counts of sexual assault.

He pleaded guilty before the trial to three counts of sexual assault and pleaded to two counts of oral rape during the trial.

Imposing sentence, Mr Justice Paul Burns said these offences were of a “grave nature”, that the man took advantage of the age disparity between him and victim and “groomed her to believe their relationship was normal”.

He noted that the abuse escalated and included violence.

Mr Justice Burns said that the victim impact statement outlined the “profound and lasting” impact of the abuse on the victim.

He said she “had nothing to feel shame and guilt about as the responsibility lies solely with the accused”. The judge also expressed the court’s “sincere sympathy” to her and best wishes for her future.

He said he had to take into account that the man was a juvenile for most of his offending and around 20 when the final incident of anal rape occurred.

However, the judge added that “offending was a course of conduct engaged over a number of years – offences can’t be treated as stand-alone”.

Mr Justice Burns noted that the man spoke at a previous sentence hearing during which he said he accepted the verdict and apologised.

However, the judge said his expressions of remorse would “carry more weight” if he had acknowledged his wrongdoing earlier.

The judge said the court “believed there is a reasonable prospect of rehabilitation”, noting that the man had not come to garda attention since these offences occurred.

He said the man would have an “opportunity to prove he is a better person than he was at time of offending” upon his release from custody.

Having considered the mitigation and the man’s personal circumstances, Mr Justice Burns imposed a global sentence of nine years with the final 12 months suspended for three years on strict conditions.

The court previously heard the man had a mini fridge in his room and used to offer his sister soft drinks if she came in. She can no longer tolerate the smell of vanilla coke as it reminds her of the abuse.

In a victim impact statement, the now 30-year-old woman read to the court, she said “the smell of vanilla coke turns my stomach”.

She said she realised during the trial the abuse had started at a very young age. “I was always a person who loved facts but these are ones I wished I’d never heard,” she said.

The woman said she has had multiple counsellors and self-harmed.

The man was sworn in and gave evidence at a previous sentencing hearing where he apologised to her and said he accepted the jury’s verdict which would be “no consolation to my sister”.

He said he breached her trust as a brother and “I am sorry for not being her protector”. The man told the court he wanted to apologise to her before but his family would not have anything to do with him. He said he hoped she was able to move on adding: “You did nothing wrong, I did.”

The investigating garda gave evidence that in late 2020, the woman told her family on the night of The Late Late Toy Show because “she couldn’t face another Christmas with him at the table”.

The garda told the court there was a seven-year age gap between the man and his sister. The abuse started by him digitally penetrating her vagina when she was seven years old.

In 2021, the man made a statement to gardai where he said “yes there was sexual abuse”, but said there was no force used and denied putting his fingers in her vagina and anally raping her. He gave evidence in the trial which was fairly much in line with the admissions he made to gardai, but denied the anal rapes.

In mitigation, Tom Creed SC, defending, noted that three of the counts of sexual assault that his client pleaded to were only added to the indictment a week before the trial and followed from his own admissions to gardai during interview.

He asked the court to consider his client’s young age at the time and to sentence him for them as a child, even though some of the offending continued after he was 18.

He said his client had no previous convictions and worked right up until the trial. He asked the court to impose a structured sentence by suspending a portion of it.

The man’s heavily pregnant wife gave evidence on his behalf, and said that he is “not that person anymore” and pleaded with the judge. “I’m begging you to let him return to his family soon”.