Courts

Former scout leader jailed for rape and sexual assault of his cousins

Limerick man (61) continues to maintain his innocence about offending which happened while babysitting and later on scouting trip

At the Central Criminal Court, Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo said the women's victim-impact statements spoke of the 'serious' impacts the man’s actions had on the three of them. Photograph: Matt Kavanagh
At the Central Criminal Court, Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo said the women's victim-impact statements spoke of the 'serious' impacts the man’s actions had on the three of them. Photograph: Matt Kavanagh
Sonya McLean
Mon Apr 29 2024 - 18:34

A former scout leader who raped his young cousin and 10 years later sexually assaulted her two teenage sisters has been jailed for 7½ years.

The 61-year-old Limerick man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of two of the survivors who wish to retain their anonymity, was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury last February following an eight-day trial. He had pleaded not guilty to a number of offences.

The accused was convicted of two counts of indecent assault against one sister and one count of rape against her. The offences occurred in her home between 1979 and 1981 when she was aged between six and eight and the accused was between 15½ and 18 years.

He was also convicted of one count of sexual assault against each of her two sisters. These victims were teenagers at the time and the man was in his mid-20s when these offences occurred between May and September 1991. The women reported the abuse to gardaí in 2019. The man continues to deny carrying out the offences.

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The court heard that in the rape incident the woman believed she must have passed out as her next recollection was of lying on the bathroom floor and her cousin splashing water on her face. She concluded that she must have passed out as she found the incident “tremendously shocking”.

The court heard that 10 years later the man, who was by then a scout leader, convinced the sisters’ parents to allow the two other victims accompany him on a charity fundraising trip with the scouts.

During this trip, he arranged that the second victim sleep in a tent alone by herself. The teenager later woke up when she felt pressure on her face and body. She found her cousin lying on top of her and attempting to get his hands inside her sleeping bag.

He succeeded, despite her efforts to push him away, and sexually assaulted her by touching her breasts.

On the same trip, the third victim went on a drive with her cousin in a van. He drove to an isolated spot and when they both got out of the vehicle, he walked towards her, grabbed her by the elbows and forcibly kissed her on the lips.

Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo said the women had prepared victim-impact statements which he said spoke of the “serious” impacts the man’s actions had on the three of them.

The first woman described “feelings of shame, guilt, pain and hurt”. She found herself being a hyper-vigilant parent which led to her children being restricted in the activities they took part in. She outlined the impact the offences had on her relationships with her extended family.

The second woman said “it takes a lot of strength” to report such incidences to gardaí but she encouraged other victims to “first pause and take a breath because you are stronger than you think”.

This victim described “feeling different all my life” and said the abuse was like “a stain on me” and described feeling like an empty shell in the aftermath of the assault.

The third victim described feelings of being “shocked, frightened, disgust, shame and sorrow” and said the abuse impacted her relationships with her family. She said she “oppressed my own emotions” as a form of survival but said that came at a cost for her.

Mr Justice Naidoo said the first victim did not understand what was being done to her at the time and said the abuse of the other sisters happened on should have been “an innocent trip” and that they had been excited to go on.

The judge said the rape offence warranted a headline sentence of 12 years taking into account the age of the victim at the time, the fact that it had an immediate physical impact on her, that it occurred in her own home and the breach of trust involved. He set headline sentences of two years for each of the sexual assaults against her.

Mr Justice Naidoo said the mitigating factor in the offences against the first victim was the man’s age at the time of the offending. He noted, however, that the accused had “an age-appropriate girlfriend” at the time and said any teenager would have known it was wrong to touch such a young child in this way. He imposed a sentence of eight years for the rape offence.

The judge said the sexual assaults against the other two women involved premeditation and were very frightening for them. He imposed concurrent terms for these two sexual assaults but ordered they be consecutive to the term imposed for the rape offence, leading to a total sentence of 9½ years. The final two years of this term was suspended.