Man who attacked sex workers jailed for 11 years

By  Sonya McLean & Claire Henry

A man who attacked two sex workers after contacting the women to avail of their services has been jailed for 11 years at the Central Criminal Court. 

Andrew Cooney (44), previously of Collins Place, Finglas, pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault, assault causing harm and threats to kill against the first victim in this case on October 9, 2022, and sexual assault, assault causing harm and threats to kill against the second woman on September 8, 2023. Cooney was on bail for the first offence when he committed the second. He had previously been convicted three times for public order offences.

The court heard that one of the women told gardaí that she did not feel the attack was sexually motivated, but rather that Cooney wanted to torture her that night.

The second woman stated in her victim impact report that she wanted to ensure that Cooney didn’t hurt any other women.

Anne-Marie Lawlor SC, prosecuting, told the court that both women received multiple injuries during the assault after Cooney struck them repeatedly.

She said that Cooney was arrested in each case after the women were able to identify the house where they had met him. He denied each offence, claiming in the first incident that 15 to 20 people had come into the house after the woman had left.

Michael Bowman SC, defending, said Cooney had written a letter of apology, stating his behaviour was inexcusable and he will always be ashamed and saddened by his behaviour both nights.

He said that while he has been on remand in prison, he has “reflected on my actions”.

“I am sorry for what I have done. I am confident that I can be a better person,” Cooney continued before he said it was out of character.  He said drink and drugs led him down a bad path.

Passing sentence today/yesterday (Friday), Mr Justice Patrick McGrath said the probation report places Cooney at moderate to high risk of reoffending and that he has a lack of insight in the way in which he has dealt with this case.

The judge said the aggravating features in this case were that both of the injured parties were vulnerable women who were working as escorts. He said these were unprovoked and planned attacks where there was a high level of violence and humiliation. He noted that both women had been detained in the house, and the second incident was committed while Cooney was on bail.

The judge said he would consider the guilty plea, which provided some degree of comfort to the injured party, and his lack of previous conviction for a similar offence as mitigating factors.

With regards to the first woman, he set a headline sentence of ten years for the aggravated sexual assault and two four-year sentences for assault causing harm and threats to kill, all of which are to run concurrently.

With regards to the second woman, Mr Justice McGrath set a headline sentence of seven years for the sexual assault count and two four-year sentences for the assault causing harm and the threats to kill counts. All of which were to run concurrently and consecutive to the sentence imposed in relation to the offending against the first woman.

Mr Justice McGrath said this is a total headline sentence of 17 years. He said he must give credit for the guilty pleas and the other mitigating factors, and reduced the sentence to 15 years. After considering the principles of proportionality, he further reduced the sentence to 13 years.

The Probation Services had outlined that Cooney would require post-release supervision, and Mr Justice McGrath suspended the final two years of his sentence for a period of two years and placed Cooney under the supervision of the Probation Services. He outlined that Cooney must follow all directions indicated by the probation services.

Detective Garda John Santry told Ms Lawlor that the first woman had only arrived in Ireland a few days previous to the attack. She had decided to work as an escort as she needed to raise money to cover medical costs arising out of a condition she had, and her husband was unable to find work.

She set up a profile on a website and was contacted by Cooney via WhatsApp. He asked her to come to his home in Collins Place, and her husband drove her there around 3.30 am.

Cooney let her into the house, and the woman could see there was cocaine, alcohol and “weed” on the table. They discussed her fee, and she agreed that it was €400 for two hours.

Cooney then began to threaten the woman with a knife, telling her he would kill her “because I am crazy”.

He told her everything would be fine if she did as she was asked before he placed his whole hand in her vagina. He held a knife against her throat during the sexual assault.

The woman managed to get her phone when Cooney left the room momentarily. She called her friend, saying “help” on the call. Cooney came back into the room, took her phone and smashed it.

The woman’s friend had been in a car outside the house with the woman’s husband.

Cooney slapped the woman across the face while holding a knife. He hit her further times in the face with his fist, striking her nose and mouth. Her t-shirt was covered in blood.

Det Gda Santry said the woman’s husband then arrived at the door and started calling at the door, but he could not get in. The woman managed to jump out a window, and Cooney ran from the house. The woman’s husband continued to look for Cooney but couldn’t find him.

She was later treated in the hospital for her injuries.

The woman later told gardaí that she felt Cooney was going to kill her. Her lip was cut, her nose was broken, and she needed stitches on the left side of her head.

She said they were “from a very poor background”. Her husband could not find any work, and they both felt that the best way to secure the necessary money to enable them to live was through her working as an escort.

She said she did not feel Cooney’s behaviour that night was sexually motivated. She believed he wanted to torture her.

Cooney was arrested after the woman was able to identify the house where she had met him.

He denied any wrongdoing and claimed this was the second time he had met the woman. He said after she left the house, 15 to 20 people “gained entry to the house,” and he then spent the night hiding from the burglars.

It was pointed out to him by gardaí that the woman had left her passport behind, but Cooney could not provide a reason as to why she would have done that.

He was charged and released on bail on October 10, 2022.

The woman stated in a victim impact report that she was unable to work afterwards and was afraid to be alone. She said she was scared to leave the house.

Detective Garda Kyle Jackson told Ms Lawlor that the second woman was contacted by Cooney on September 8, 2023, again via a WhatsApp message in response to an advertisement she had for her services.

He told her it was an urgent situation and instructed her to get a taxi. She arrived just before midnight, and Cooney was at the door waiting for her.

He led her to a bedroom and gave her €50 – the agreed price had been €250. He told her he was going out to get more money, left the bedroom and locked the door behind him. The woman noticed white powder in the room.

He returned and struck her about ten times while she begged him to let her leave. He then pushed her onto the bed, grabbed her by the hands, took off her clothes and sexually assaulted her. She resisted him by kicking and screaming.

He said he was sorry and that he would let her go in five minutes. The woman’s clothes were covered in blood.

He stripped her entirely of her clothes. The incident had lasted 40 minutes, and the woman told him that some men knew where she was and they would be outside looking for her.

Cooney only stopped the attack after she repeatedly told her that these men would be outside his door.

He refused to give her back her phone, but eventually gave it to her. He took back the €50 he had given her. The woman ran from the house and went to a neighbouring house for help. She took a photo of Cooney’s house.

Cooney was later arrested and claimed that it was “a false allegation”. He said he had told the woman he would pay her €250.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said she is constantly scared and cannot sleep. She is afraid to interact with others and has a “revulsion” towards men. She was unable to work and had to be financially supported by friends and family.

“He has destroyed my life.  I don’t have a normal life anymore,” she said, adding that Cooney seemed out of his mind that night.

She said she wanted to make sure he didn’t hurt any other women.

Mr Bowman said his client has seven children but has no contact with his family since his arrest.

He said a probation report before the court indicated that he had “a lot of work to do”.