Irish Red Cross paid out settlement over alleged sexual assault by staff member

The Irish Red Cross paid a financial settlement to a woman who alleged she had been sexually assaulted by another employee while working at an event for the humanitarian charity.

The woman, who was working for the charity at the time, alleged a male staff member sexually assaulted her while the pair were working for the Irish Red Cross at a festival in 2014, sources said.

In recent months the Irish Red Cross paid a financial settlement to the woman to settle a civil case she had taken against the organisation over the alleged sexual assault.

It is understood the alleged assault was reported to An Garda Síochána, who investigated the matter and sent a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). The man alleged to have assaulted the woman denied the allegations. The DPP opted not to pursue a prosecution in the case, one source said.

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Neither the alleged victim or the alleged perpetrator in the case currently work for the charity.

High Court records show the woman lodged a personal injuries claim against both the accused and the Irish Red Cross in 2019. Several affidavits have been filed in the case in the past three years.

In recent months the legal case was settled with the Irish Red Cross agreeing to pay the alleged victim compensation, following mediation talks between lawyers for the parties.

Solicitors for both the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator declined to comment on the civil case when contacted.

A spokesman for the Irish Red Cross confirmed “that the civil case which stems from an allegation arising from an incident between two employees at a festival in 2014 has been settled”.

“The organisation is satisfied that the matter was handled correctly at that time when it became aware of the issue which it took extremely seriously,” he said.

The Irish Red Cross has been heavily involved in humanitarian efforts to respond to the war in Ukraine, raising more than €30 million in donations following the Russian invasion earlier this year. About half of the money raised will be held back to help rebuild the country after the war, with several million euro already sent to the region to fund emergency relief efforts.

Another fundraising appeal run by the charity to support the community in Creeslough, Co Donegal, where 10 people died in an explosion at a service station in recent weeks has raised more than €1 million.