Offaly 'monster' who abused his niece jailed for three years

A 'monster' who sexually abused his young niece when he was a teenager over 40 years ago, subjecting her to 'unspeakable trauma' has been jailed for three years.

The man (59), who can't be named to protect the anonymity of his victim, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of attempted rape and four counts of indecent assault. The court heard these are sample counts, and the pleas were acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions on a full facts basis.

The victim was aged between six and 13 when the abuse occurred on various dates between 1977 and 1984 at her family home and at her grandparents' house in Co. Offaly. The man is her uncle and was aged between 13 and 19 at the time.

The court heard that the abuse started with the man kissing the girl when she was about six. Over time, the abuse escalated to include inappropriate touching over and under her clothes, forced masturbation, oral sex, and attempted rape.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said her uncle hid his true nature, describing him as a “monster”, “predator” and “sexual deviant”.

“While destroying my life, he has sailed happily through his,” she said, asking the court to hold him accountable for his actions.

The woman said the decision to report the “catalogue of abuse” she was subjected to by her uncle was the “hardest decision I've ever had to make”.

She said putting what happened into words has been as “traumatising” as the flashbacks, and her decision to speak to gardai was not taken with “malicious intent”.

The woman said she had been emotionally “destroyed all my life,” feeling “dirty, useless and broken”.

She said she believed her uncle was “considerably older than me, but this is not the case”, and this has made it harder to come to terms with the abuse.

The woman spoke of her childhood, noting, “My life should have been idyllic and not the nightmare I had to endure, suffer and survive”.

She said her mother is also dealing with the “horror” of her brother's actions.

“My mother has so many unanswered questions. How could her own brother do that to her own child?  How could he abuse me when she welcomed him to stay in our family home? He should have protected me but instead chose to abuse her trust over and over.”

She said she was terrified of her uncle and didn't understand what was happening.

“He got pleasure out of hurting me and calling me vile and disgusting names”.

Today Mr Justice Paul McDermott noted the man had admitted a number of “serious sexual offences” against his niece, committed when he was a teenager.

The judge said the woman provided a “very detailed and focused” impact statement, which outlined the long-lasting effects of the abuse on her life.

“In telling her story, she’s acted in a way that the court regards as courageous...it is very difficult for a child victim of sexual abuse to tell that story”, he said, noting that there can be effects that flow from telling their truth.

He added that it is the actions of the offender which undermine trust and familial bonds. “He bears full responsibility for all consequences that flow from then to now and into the future”.

Mr Justice McDermott said it is an aggravating feature that the offending was committed against a “small innocent girl who was robbed of her childhood” and “subjected to unspeakable trauma” in her home, which should have been a place of safety.

He said he would impose a sentence of 12 years on an adult in relation to the attempted rape count but would reduce it to four years as the man was aged between 13 and 16 at the time.

“It is clear he knew what he was doing was wrong, given the secret way he went about it and the advantage he took of the absence of adults...he must have known he was hurting her as she was crying and begging him to stop,” the judge said, adding that the abuse continued until the man was 19, an adult and working.

The judge said the man's guilty plea is a significant mitigating feature as it is a “public acknowledgement of guilt”. He said the court was willing to accept the man's expressions of remorse are genuine.

Mr Justice McDermott said he also took into account the man's lack of previous convictions and that he led an “otherwise positive life for a period of 40 years or more”.

He handed the man a global sentence of four years, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. He backdated the sentence to March 11, when the man went into custody and directed him to place himself under the supervision of the Probation Services for two years post-release.