Dublin man goes on trial for rape and sexual abuse

An elderly Dublin man has gone on trial at the Central Criminal Court charged with the repeated rape and sexual abuse of three teenagers over 40 years ago.

The 75-year-old has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of rape and one of indecent assault in relation to the first female complainant and 14 charges in relation to both rape and indecent assault of a second female complainant on dates between January 1, 1970 and August 31, 1973. The girls were aged between 13 and 16 years old at the time.

The man has also pleaded not guilty to 19 charges of indecent assault of a male on dates between January 1, 1969 and June 30, 1973 when he was aged between 13 and 17 years old.

The jury heard that the second complainant alleges that the man fathered her first child which she then gave up for adoption.

Mr Patrick McGrath SC, prosecuting, told the jury in his opening address, that the accused met the three teenagers through his involvement with a local choir, while the male complainant also worked in the accused’s family business.

He said the male complainant would testify that he had “effectively been taken under the accused’s wing” as a young teenager, given a job in the man’s family business and brought to football matches in England with him.

Mr McGrath said the complainant would tell the jury that the accused first introduced him to alcohol when he was 13 years old and shortly after started to abuse him.

He said it was the State’s case that the man showed the young boy pornography before forcing him to perform oral sex on him and masturbate him. He then also masturbated the child.

Mr McGrath said the complainant alleges that the abuse continued in that manner, at a least once a week, until the teenager met his future wife when he was 17 years old.

He said the abuse occurred mainly in the office where the accused worked but also in his mother’s home.

Mr McGrath said the two female complainants were cousins and good friends. They also met the accused through his involvement with the church choir.

He said that both women will allege that the man would often drive them home from mass but then make some excuse to attend his office where he would rape them.

The women do not allege that they were raped at the same time but on separate occasions when either one of them were the last child in the car with him.

Mr McGrath said the first complainant would testify that the man first raped her in the home he shared with his mother, after he showed her pornography, which included images of bestiality.

She alleges that the man raped her on a regular basis and on one occasion forced her to perform oral sex on him. She claims that the abuse came to an end when she met her future husband.

Mr McGrath told the jury that the second complainant also alleges that the man regularly raped her and forced her to perform oral sex on him.

Mr McGrath said the allegations came to light when the male complainant reported the abuse to gardaí in 2004 after he confronted the accused about it.

The accused denied the allegations in a subsequent garda interview and claimed that the man wanted to get his shares of the family business and was trying to embarrass and shame him.

He claimed that the male complainant had also started to harass him.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Barry White and a jury of seven women and five men.