Man jailed for sexually assaulting student

A student advertised a room in her apartment for rental share on Daft.ie but she was sexually assaulted in a bizarre fashion by a man who spoke of bad energy in the rooms before his actions became sexual and he later plucked a hair from her head to put in his wallet.

Dileesh Soman, 32, with an address at 20 Adare Mews, Tramway Terrace, Douglas, Cork, who is from India, was sentenced to four years in jail with the last year suspended yesterday at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

The young woman, who was sexually assaulted in her apartment in another part of Cork City, said in her victim impact statement, read by Detective Garda Ian Coughlan, she did not want to be in court for the sentencing.

“I do not ever wish to see the accused again. I hate him for all the insecurities and fears he has brought to my life. I did not deserve this; no one deserves this,” she said.

The accused responded to an ad placed on the property website by the victim for a room at her apartment. She met him outside and he used a false name.

As soon as she brought him in it was clear he had no interest in the apartment. “In the bedroom he said the room had a very bad energy. He told her to show him her wrists, elbows, belly and knees. He said if he fell on her he would break her.

“He touched her breasts, opened her jeans and put his hand inside her underwear.

“In the kitchen he lifted her up on the counter and he spread her legs out saying, ‘I am now going to touch you, it is OK.’ He kissed her on the lips. He kissed and squeezed her breasts. He kept saying to relax, that it was all bad energy coming out.

“He took hair from her head and put it in his wallet. He later sent her two text messages asking her how she was,” Det Garda Coughlan said.

He was identified through CCTV after the woman reported the sexual assault.

Donal O’Sullivan, defence barrister, said Soman was a married man and “he did not seem to have full comprehension of what he did but ultimately he said he knew it was wrong”.