Waterford woman failed to consider actual victims before making false sexual assault claim

A false sexual assault claim made by Ms. Tanya Wall in 2023 had far reaching and significant impacts on the community.

The unfounded claim made by Wall, who has an address at 68 Congress Villas, Dungarvan, caused major upset and disruption in Dungarvan at the time, after a Facebook post made by her sister claimed that the woman had been sexually assaulted by a group of non-Irish nationals.

It was heard in Waterford Circuit Court recently that Ms. Wall "fuelled racial tension" and "planted hatred" into the community as a result of her claim.

The lie created by Ms. Wall lent itself to the creation of a vigilante group who sought to address what they perceived as Gardaí inactivity in the area.

‘Please come forward’ 

False accusations of this sort are rare, and according to research compiled by Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, police across eleven European counties deemed over 91% of allegations of rape as meeting crime investigation thresholds. UK data indicates that less than 1% of rape claims are false.

In fact, rape is an underreported crime, and in Ireland, less than 10% of victims report it.

Speaking to the News & Star this week, Anne Scully, Manager of the Waterford Rape & Sexual Abuse Centre, spoke on the topic of false sexual assault claims, reassuring victims that they will be heard if they come forward for help: 

“One of the things that stops people from coming forward is a fear that they won’t believed, but they absolutely will” Ms. Scully said. 

"So if you’re thinking of reporting or thinking of coming for help, don’t let this incident put you off. Although they are rare, there are false statements made, so we always start from a position of belief. It’s hard for people to come forward, so we’ll do everything we can to support them. 

"People will believe you, so please come forward and don’t be afraid. Even if you’re thinking of reporting or reaching out for help, one of the first things people can do is pick up the phone and talk to somebody here, and we’ll take it from there.” 

Ms. Scully noted that Gardaí are also fully equipped to hear and respond to claims: "What was clear from this report is that the Gardaí investigated and took it seriously, as will we, or any other agency who you might come to for help. In my experience, gardaí work very hard to gather as much evidence as they can, to try and help a case move forward. So I would be urging people to remember all that and to take all that on board."

Ms Scully added: “What we do at the Waterford Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre is offer support and counselling to people who’ve been victims of sexual violence, at whatever stage they are in their life and however long ago it happened. We would also offer support to their loved ones.

“Even if you’re not sure we’re the right service for you, pick up the phone and gives us a ring, because we’ll do our best to point you in the right direction.

“Obviously false reports do happen, but you know you’re coming forward to tell your truth, regardless of what anybody else has said previously. If somebody had made a false allegation, that is nothing to do with you."