Woman who made false rape claim has charges dismissed

A YOUNG woman who sparked a major investigation two years ago when she made a false claim that she had been raped in Cork city had the charges against her dismissed yesterday as it was accepted by the prosecution that she was highly unlikely to commit any further offences in the future.

The case arose out of a visit by Lorraine Forde, aged 24, from Baltimore Road, Skibbereen, Co Cork, to Cork city for a night out with friends. The others went into a nightclub but the defendant was refused because she did not have ID and she became detached from the group.

Forde made a spur of the moment decision to text her sister that she had been raped.

Her sister and friends immediately returned to the house where they were staying and notified gardaí. Forde then made two statements about the false rape to gardaí.

But she was later asked about discrepancies in her story and she confessed everything. At the time, 15 members of An Garda Síochána were assigned to investigate the case on a full-time basis over a period of 12 days.