Man, 34, due in court after daylight assault on teenage girl in Fermoy

A garda spokesman confirmed tonight that the man has been charged and is due before Mallow district court tomorrow morning

A garda spokesman confirmed tonight that the man has been charged and is due before Mallow district court tomorrow morning. File Picture: Dan Linehan

A man is due in court today charged in connection with a daylight assault on a teenage girl in Fermoy, Co Cork.

The man, aged 34, was arrested following allegations he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl as she was walking in Chapel Square in the town at 1.20pm on Monday.

He is due before Mallow District Court.

The girl was taken to hospital after the attack and although she was not badly injured, she has been left traumatised.

Two men, in their late teens, rushed to the girl’s aid as the incident was unfolding.

Brandon Geary was on his way to meet his friends in the town when he received a phone call alerting him that someone was in trouble.

Mr Geary described how one of his closest friends suffered head injuries after he intervened to help the girl.

“He went over to help her because a man was pulling her [underwear],” said Mr Geary. “The man turned around and started hitting him. He fought back but was hit with a glass bottle straight to the side of the head. The bottle shattered in his head. He came home with two stitches.

“It was lunchtime, school’s out. This girl is only 16. My friend always tries to protect everyone else. He is a hero in everyone’s eyes.”

Mr Geary said young people in the area are fearful after the incident.

“Young girls are scared, definitely. It is awful,” he said.

An elderly woman, who declined to be named, said her relative was one of the young men injured when intervening.

“It is desperate to be attacked like that in daylight,” she said. “You would be afraid now to go out or to go down any laneways. You don’t know who is going to come out on top of you.”

Sexual Violence Centre Cork director Mary Crilly said a number of high-profile and random attacks on women and girls in recent weeks has made the public fearful that these types of assaults are on the rise.

“I don’t think it’s that these attacks are more common,” said Ms Crilly. “I think it is just that we are reporting it. We are more aware of it. People may have heard it on the radio before and it may have gone over their head. Now we are very aware of it.”