A man's claim that he was sleepwalking when he allegedly sexually assaulted his cousin has been branded "preposterous" in court today.
The 26-year-old is accused of climbing into his cousin's bed and sexually assaulting her while staying over at her Dublin apartment following a family funeral in August 2009.
He says he cannot remember and claims he suffers from sexsomnia - a condition which he said causes him to physically and sexually attack his pregnant girlfriend in his sleep.
The medical experts at the trial were split as to how likely it is for a person to become sexually aroused while sleepwalking.
The prosecution claims that, by his own admission, he was intoxicated on the night and he is now pushing forward a defence that allows him to evade responsibility.
The defence said that he is not a sexual predator.
"He is not consciousness of having committed a crime...he just wants to get to the bottom of it," the court heard.
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