Sex charge pensioner planning US holiday
The man, who will be 70 next month, was handed a book of evidence at Limerick District Court and on the application of the DPP was sent forward for trial to the October 7 sitting of Limerick Circuit Court.
The offences are alleged to have occurred at locations in Limerick and Clare, including Cratloe Woods, on dates between June 2009 and December 2011 and involved a girl then aged between 13 and 15.
Garda Patrick Hogan applied to have the defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, remanded on continuing bail.
Bail conditions include handing up his passport.
Ted McCarthy, defence solicitor, applied to have the accused’s passport returned as he needed it for travel and without it his freedom was limited.
Mr McCarthy said the defendant’s partner has the opportunity of going to Spain and Orlando, Florida on holiday and the accused would like to accompany her.
He said the court had previously returned the passport to allow the accused travel to the UK and the accused had never shown any inclination to avoid the case and had every intention of meeting the charges.
He did not see why any mistrust should now arise about the defendant’s travels.
Judge Eugene O’Kelly, refusing the application for the return of the passport, said: “Now he has been returned for trial on 80 separate counts of very serious charges..”
Objecting to the return of the passport, Sgt Donal Cronin said the accused had previously resided in different parts of the world, outside of Europe, in North Africa and was an exceptionally high flight risk.
Judge O’Kelly said: “This man is on free legal aid and I have been told he wishes to holiday in Spain and Florida and wants to travel extensively.”
Judge O’Kelly said if the accused has future plans to travel to the UK he can give 14 days’ notice to the State of his proposed outward and return flights and who is paying for them.
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