Man jailed for abusing young sister
The court heard the then 16-year-old carried out the abuse because he had no sexual education and did not realise what he was doing was wrong. He was badly beaten as a child by his alcoholic father and was later thrown out of the house.
A local detective garda told Mr Justice Paul Carney at the Central Criminal Court that the girl is still seriously affected by the abuse and is afraid her brother will return to her home.
The now 20-year-old, who cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity, has a string of previous convictions for offences such as assault, car theft and criminal damage. He began abusing alcohol and drugs at a young age.
Mr Justice Carney said a dysfunctional background or the abuse of drink and drugs offers “little or no mitigation” and that the offence was made worse because it happened in the victim’s home.
He said it was a breach of trust and that there was “an element of grooming and stalking” involved. He imposed a five-year term with the second two-and-a-half years suspended. The maximum term for the offence is 14 years.
Mr Justice Carney also ordered the man to stay away from his sister and undergo post-release supervision.
He pleaded guilty to sexual assault of his sister in a Cork town between June 2006 and September 2008.
The garda told Marjorie Farrelly SC, prosecuting, that from the age of 15 or 16 the boy started exposing himself to his sister and masturbating in front of her. He also exposed her to pornography on television.
On one occasion he went into her bedroom and took off her clothes before sexually abusing her. She later told a friend about the incident and the gardaí were alerted.
The detective described him as “a very troubled young man” who committed crimes to feed his drug habit.
The detective agreed with Thomas Creed SC, defence that the youth was extremely remorseful and broke down crying during his interview. Counsel submitted that his client feels genuine shame and is doing well in prison.
