Sex abuser gets 15-year ban from home town

A LIMERICK bachelor was banned from his home town until he reaches the age of 75, so that the younger brothers and sister of the boy he sexually assaulted will all have reached the age of adulthood.

Judge Patrick J Moran, at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, imposed a three-year jail sentence on Patrick O’Brien, 60, from Tankardstown North, Kilmallock, Co Limerick.

He had pleaded guilty earlier this month to six counts of sexually assaulting a boy at two locations on various occasions between April 4, 2004 and September 1, 2006.

The last 18 months of the sentence were suspended on condition that O’Brien would not return to Kilmallock for another 15 years.

O’Brien was sworn in and agreed with the conditions under which that part of the sentence was suspended.

However, several minutes later, after the sentencing had been concluded, O’Brien’s senior counsel, Tom Creed, applied to have the matter mentioned again. He said O’Brien wanted to withdraw from the bond whereby he was banned from Kilmallock for the next 15 years.

Judge Moran said: “Why should I allow him to go back when he has finished his prison sentence and cause extreme upset to this family. I am not allowing him to withdraw from the bond.

“I am very concerned about this family. They are entitled to be protected from this person.”

Mr Creed had asked initially for a fully suspended sentence to be imposed. The case had been adjourned a fortnight ago to give the defendant time to come up with proposals for moving to another area so as to avoid meeting his victim and his family.

The judge was told yesterday that O’Brien had moved to another part of Kilmallock and that a premises was being renovated for him in Bruff, County Limerick.

Imposing sentence, the judge said the victim was only seven when the sexual assaults occurred. “I think it is something that may affect him for some years to come,” the judge said.

Judge Moran was told that the youngest child in the family was now three and he wanted O’Brien kept out of the area until this child reaches the age of 18.

Afterwards the parents said that justice was done and that the 15-year ban was of greater significance than the prison sentence.