Former boxer jailed for sex assault on sleeping woman

A former Cork boxer has been jailed for sexually assaulting a sleeping woman.

Owen Roche, aged 31, of 2 Hanover House, Fermoy, Co Cork, was given a four-year jail term with the last 18 months suspended. He was also put on the Sex Offenders Register.

Roche denied the sexual assault, but last month at Cork Circuit Criminal Court a jury found him guilty of the crime which took place on May 1 last year.

The victim was asleep in bed at her home in North Cork after a drinks party which had been attended by a number of people. Roche had been allowed to stay and sleep on the couch.

The woman, in her mid-20s, woke to find there was a man in the bed lying behind her. He had his hand on her vagina. She turned to find it was not her partner but Roche. She told him to get out of the room.

“He embarked on a stealthy sexual assault on a sleeping woman. It is a sneaky, despicable crime. He knew full well she was asleep. There was not the slightest shred of consent or encouragement,” Judge Donagh McDonagh said.

The judge said he was distinctly unimpressed by the tone taken by the accused when he was interviewed by gardaí. Roche referred to the victim as “a lying c***”. “It was unnecessary, gratuitous, meant to be demeaning and insulting of her, it showed the mental attitude he had, he simply did not care. There is no remorse shown, no meaningful remorse,” said the judge.

Defence barrister Seamus Roche said Roche was formerly a boxer and had to give it up due to a hand injury. Regarding the disputed incident, the barrister said the accused “appeared to have been under a misapprehension his moves were being accepted. He thought he did no wrong. The jury found otherwise and he accepts the verdict of the jury”.

The victim said in her impact statement the sexual assault had a terrible effect on her.

“I was put on anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medication by my GP. I could not sleep at night and I began drinking heavily to block out what happened and to numb myself. I stopped going of the house unless I had to and I never went out alone. I no longer visit my housebound mother because I was too frightened to leave the house,” she said.

“Owen Roche continued to deny he sexually assaulted me. Some people called me a liar when I’d walk down the street. Some of my friends no longer made contact with me. I thought nobody except my family and a small amount of friends believed me. I found the wait for the court case and the prospect of the trial took my life from me.

“The sexual assault has had a profound impact on my life. I continue to get flashbacks and nightmares and continue to suffer from depression and anxiety. I am currently attending counselling and will need to for some time to come.

“Now that Owen Roche has been found guilty I hope I can begin to get my life back on track. I no longer drink to forget and numb myself and believe that I am improving day by day.”

She thanked her family for supporting her through it. She also thanked the gardaí who dealt with the case and the Sexual Violence Centre in Cork.