This article contains references to rape and sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.
By Fiona Ferguson
A man who raped a woman after she had been socialising at a nightclub with her friends has been jailed for six and a half years.
Arthur Bradford (37) was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury last month of raping the woman in Dublin on February 8, 2022. He has 21 previous convictions.
Diana Stuart SC, prosecuting, told the court the woman wished to retain her right to anonymity, but had no difficulty with Bradford being named in reporting of the case.
An investigating garda previously told Ms Stuart that the injured party had been out socialising with her friends and remembered little after a certain point in the night. Her last memory was dancing with a friend at a nightclub.
She woke up in a house she had never been in before, with her underwear inside out and felt as if she had had sex but that it was not consensual. She left the flat and contacted a friend.
She later contacted gardai. She attended a sexual assault treatment unit and semen containing DNA matching Bradford was identified in a high vaginal swab.
CCTV from the nightclub showed the woman being approached by two men. She seemed unsteady on her feet, while Bradford appeared sober. The prosecution’s case was that the woman was so intoxicated that she was incapable of giving consent.
When interviewed, Bradford of Charleville Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6 said she had asked him where he was going and he invited her back to the flat where they had consensual sex.
In her victim impact statement, the woman said the offence had left her feeling unsafe. She said it had affected her relationships and education. She said the whole experience had been traumatising and damaging.
She said the forensic exam and the whole experience of reporting the rape was the hardest thing she had ever done. She said it had taken a long time to get to court and she continues to get help.
Bradford has a number of previous convictions, including for public order and road traffic offences, money laundering and theft.
Passing sentence, Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo said this incident was “undoubtedly extremely traumatic” for the woman, and that it has had a “significant” impact on her.
Having set a headline sentence of seven years, the judge noted that while Bradford has no previous convictions for sexual offending, he does not have a “clean record” as he has other convictions.
Having considered Bradford’s personal circumstances and the mitigation, Mr Justice Naidoo imposed a sentence of six and a half years. He said a post release supervision order was not appropriate and he encouraged Bradford to engage with offence-focused work while in custody.
The court previously heard that Bradford, who is from Ghana, has been living in Ireland for 16 years and is subject to a deportation order.
Bernard Condon SC, defending, said his client’s mother was in court and handed two testimonials into court which he said outlined his client was a highly regarded and important part of his family. He said his client has a work history and was a father of one.