Donegal man sentenced to five years in prison at Central Criminal Court  for rape

A Donegal man with previous convictions for the rape and stalking of two different women has been sentenced to five years in prison for rape 

The Central Criminal Court heard that Desmond Leitch, 37, of Castlefinn, Co Donegal, was found guilty of rape at an address in Convoy, Co Donegal, on January 14, 2018. 

The injured party in this case wished to have Leitch named in the media reporting, but did not wish to have her own name published.

At a previous hearing, the court heard that the injured party and a friend were out socialising in Pulse Nightclub in Letterkenny when they met Leitch and a friend of his. 

The group left the nightclub and went to a house in Convoy in Donegal, which the injured party was unfamiliar with. The injured party was highly intoxicated and described being “blackout drunk”, sat away from the others, and did not interact with them.

The injured party's friend and Leitch’s friend paired off and went to a bedroom in the house. Leitch tried to kiss the injured party, but she pushed him away.  

Leitch then pulled the then 18-year-old woman to a spare bedroom. When in the bedroom, Leitch asked the woman for oral sex, and she refused. Her next memory was Leitch on top of her, raping her.

The court heard that Leitch pinned the woman down; she was crying but was afraid to make too much noise as she could tell that he was getting angry. 

When the rape was over, the woman went into the room where her friend was sleeping and slept at the bottom of that bed. She later disclosed what had happened and was taken to a sexual assault treatment unit.

Leitch was arrested and interviewed by gardaí but denied knowing or meeting the injured party.  

A victim impact statement was read to the court by the injured party, which outlined the night of the rape, she “lost everything”. She described how she no longer trusts men and is “overwhelmed with feelings of self-loathing about her body.”

The woman said she “doesn’t think she will ever be the same again”. She suffers from flashbacks and is in constant fear, and is afraid to leave the house.

In advance of his trial, Leitch was assessed, and an intermediary was ordered to assist him during his trial. Leitch was found guilty of rape by a Central Criminal Court jury in October 2025. 

A psychology report before the court outlined that Leitch suffered from mental health issues from the age of 12. In both 2006 and 2008, he suffered psychotic episodes. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia. 

At the age of 16, Leitch was assessed and diagnosed with a mild intellectual function.

Mr Justice David Keane said he must take Leitch’s cognitive ability into consideration when sentencing.

 He said that a probation report before the court placed Leitch at a “high risk of sexual reoffending in the next twelve months if he were to live in the community.”   

Leitch has two significant previous convictions, with the first handed down by the Central Criminal Court in February 2021, where he was found guilty of the rape of a woman in 2016. The woman woke up in her apartment to Leitch raping her. 

He served a sentence from February 2021 until 2024. Leitch was also found guilty of stalking a woman by the Strabane Magistrates’ Court. He was sentenced to nine months in prison, but upon appeal, this was reduced to eight months.

Judge Keane sentenced Leitch to five years in prison, backdated to October 2024, when he entered custody on this matter.

Judge Keane outlined again the Probation Service[s expressions of serious concern for Leitch’s high risk of reoffending, and in order to protect the public and aid in his own rehabilitation, he placed Leitch under the supervision of the Probation Service for four years upon his release from prison. 

He also instructed that Leitch is to carry out all instructions deemed necessary by the Probation Services.