Orphan's life 'haunted by abuser'

An eight-year-old orphan was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a voluntary worker and yesterday the victim said his adult life was haunted by his abuser.

"He controlled my life from the age of eight, he is still controlling my life, it will always be with me in my head," the victim said yesterday after the paedophile abuser got a two-year jail sentence to commence when another six-year sentence ends in May 2006.

Patrick Finbarr Murphy (aged 59), with an address at Beechwood Avenue Lower, Ranelagh, Dublin, was a voluntary worker at Mount Saint Joseph's in Passage West, Co Cork, at the time the sexual crimes were committed.

The sexual abuse of the eight-year-old boy happened when the victim was in the care of the institution in the early 1970's.

The victim of the sexual assaults did not want his own identity revealed.

Afterwards, the victim that he did get justice but that his life was ruined completely.

The 39-year-old victim in the case before the court yesterday said he had children but he did not sexually assault them even though he had been abused.

He said Murphy should have learned from his experiences and not repeated the abuse.

"Three times I tried to commit suicide. I cannot get this man out of my head. I cannot keep a job, I cannot keep a relationship. He has remorse, that is not good enough. I am doing a life sentence, I am on heavy medication all the time," he said.

In disturbing evidence in the case Sergeant Rose O’Shea said: "Mr Murphy would pick the injured party out of a line in the morning and bring him into his room upstairs where the sexual abuse would take place. He would fondle his testicles and squeeze them and he would masturbate himself."

Murphy has convictions from, Dublin, Waterford and England for sexual crimes against children, including the detention of a child for sexual purposes and the possession of child pornography.

Judge Seán O’Donnabháin said to Murphy at Cork Circuit Criminal Court: "You are a paedophile, I have to see you as posing a high risk to society. If and when you are released you should never have any exposure to children.

"Obviously you will be on the sex offenders register indefinitely, which means life."

Tim O’Leary, barrister, said the defendant had genuine remorse and pleaded guilty to the charges even though he did not have a specific memory of the victim or the incidents.

The barrister said Murphy was raised in an orphanage as a child and he was also a victim of sexual abuse. He later trained as a psychiatric nurse.

The two-year jail sentence will commence in May 2006. When it is finished he will have to remain under the supervision of the Probation and Welfare Service.