Man jailed for sexual abuse of his cousin when they were both children

Eimear Dodd

A man who sexually abused his young cousin when they were both children has been jailed for 12 months and placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for one-week post-release.

The 39-year-old Dublin man pleaded guilty on a trial date to one count of anal rape and one count of oral rape on a date between December 2000 and 2002.

He has no previous convictions.

He was aged between 13 and 15 at the time, while his cousin was aged between eight and 10 years old. The man cannot be named to protect his victim’s right to anonymity.

The younger boy was visiting his cousin’s home when the abuse occurred.

Imposing the sentence on Friday, Judge Karen O’Connor said this was a difficult case, due to the youth of both parties.

She said the age gap was “significant in terms of development” and aggravating, noting there is a “vast difference in the level of maturity” between an eight-year-old and a 13-year-old.

The judge said the breach of trust and the effect on the injured party were also aggravating.

She noted the man pleaded guilty on a trial date, which meant the complainant faced the anxiety of a pending trial. She said this was not aggravating but rather a loss of mitigation.

Justice O’Connor set a headline sentence of seven years for an adult, reducing it by half to reflect that the man was a child in law at the time.

Having considered the man’s circumstances and that the offending took place over 20 years ago, she imposed a sentence of two years, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions.

The court was told that, as the man was a juvenile at the time of his offending, it must specify the period he will be placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register.

O’Connor directed that the man should be placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register for one-week post-release.

She noted that the man had nothing else in over 20 years.

She said that it is “not unusual for a child victim to be unable to articulate or disclose offending”, that this victim had been assisted in making a complaint by counselling, and it is a matter of fact that this offending occurred over 20 years ago.

The investigating garda previously told Eilis Brennan, prosecuting, that the two boys were in the defendant’s bedroom.

The teenager was playing a video game, likely Metal Gear Solid, and the younger boy was watching him. He asked the boy if he wanted to try something in exchange for a go of a game.

The boy agreed, but was too young to understand what was going on. The defendant then anally raped him, with the court hearing it lasted only a few seconds.

The teenager also asked the boy to put his penis in his mouth, which he agreed to. The defendant then asked the boy to put his penis in his anus, but it wasn’t physically possible.

The court heard there were two other occasions when the teenager asked the boy to do something. The injured party doesn’t remember the details of the first occasion except that it was interrupted. In relation to the second attempt, the boy was old enough to know it was not right and able to refuse.

The two cousins didn’t have much of a relationship, but would see each other at family occasions. A few years ago, the injured party wrote to the man on Facebook, telling him to stay away from his family.

He told a counsellor what had happened, but didn’t give them the full truth as he didn’t want to identify his abuser as a member of his family.

He told his partner and parents in December 2022. The court heard his parents went to confront the man, and there was some unpleasantness.

He also made a complaint to the gardaí that same month. The defendant was interviewed in May 2023 and made no comment.

The garda agreed with Michael Bowman, defending, that there is now a rupture in the family and that his client lives a solitary lifestyle.

It was also accepted that the plea is of value to the prosecution and that the man has a good work history.

In a victim impact statement read to the court by Brennan, the injured party said: “What happened to me was not something that stayed in the past” and has had long-lasting consequences.

He said he did not understand what was happening and felt vulnerable and alone. He said the sense of safety and innocence that every child deserves was taken from him.

He said he felt a constant sense of emotional pain as a teenager and that the trauma has continued to affect many areas of his life.

He said the impact has also been felt by those closest to him, and the truth coming out “caused a great deal of distress and pain”.

He said it “created worry, sadness and stress within the family as we tried to process and cope with what happened”.

He said that pursuing justice was important to him, but it has been emotionally exhausting and stressful for him and his family.

Bowman asked the court to take into account that his client was a young teenager at the time and that his offending lasted only a few seconds.

He said his client takes full responsibility and regrets his behaviour.

A letter of apology was handed to the court along with a probation report, which suggests his offending was a result of sexual experimentation and curiosity.

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.