Priest apologises to victim he sexually abused since age 11

A Dominican priest who betrayed the trust of a family in Cork to sexually abuse their son for years has been jailed for three years, with half suspended.

At Cork Circuit Criminal Court yesterday Fr Vincent Mercer, 66, who is out of ministry but remains a member of the Dominican Order, told his victim he was sorry.

Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin said: “This was a most serious breach of trust, given Mercer’s occupation at the time and the difference of age, he being an adult and the boy being 11 at the time — a significant age gap. Mr Mercer was a family friend. He had been received into the family as a friend; there was a significant breach of trust.”