Jury fails to reach verdict in pub sex-assault trial

A jury in the Central Criminal Court trial of a Mayo man accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting two children in the pub where he worked as a barman has been discharged after failing to reach a verdict.

The 39-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had pleaded not guilty to 16 counts of sexual assault and 13 counts of oral rape against the first girl; also 14 counts of sexual assault, 13 counts of oral rape and one count of anal rape against the second girl on dates between June 1999 and September 2000.