A 13-year-old girl tried to take her life following round-the-clock harassment by a 41-year-old man, the Circuit Criminal Court in Dublin has heard.
Terence Weldredge, now 43, will be sentenced in July for harassment, sexual exploitation and sending menacing messages to the girl. Over one two-day period he attempted to contact her 273 times.
Weldredge, of Castlekevin Road, Coolock, Dublin, pleaded guilty to the three offences, which occurred between September 2011 and January 2012.
The girl said in a victim impact report that Weldredge harassed her “24/7” and that she couldn’t sleep or concentrate at school. She said she felt depressed and alone and was teased by her friends about the messages.
Mental health difficulties The court heard Weldredge also tried to take his life after being caught and that he suffers from mental health difficulties brought about by drug abuse. His defence counsel submitted he had a low level of intelligence and that he also was very remorseful.
Garda Katie Flood told prosecuting counsel Cathleen Noctor that the girl got a text from Weldredge in September 2011. He said he had found her number written on a bus and that he was 15 years old. The two began texting and she sent him a fully clothed picture of herself at his request.
He began to ask her for phone sex, to send her pictures including a photo of a man in a balaclava with a gun.
Buy her alcohol He told her he wanted to have sex with her and that he would buy her alcohol. He sent her a picture of a teddy bear and said "I love you" before asking her to "have his baby". He was aware she was 13 at this time.
In January 2013, he sent her a picture of his face and the girl could see he wasn’t a teenager. She called him a liar and told him to stop texting her. Over the following two days he called or texted her 273 times. The contact only stopped when she went to gardaí and they took her phone.
Weldredge was arrested and said he believed the girl was about 20 and he couldn’t remember what he said to her because he was taking ecstasy at the time.“I feel like I made a prick of myself, like a paedophile,” he told gardaí.
Defence counsel Una Ní Raifeartaigh said her client suffered institutional abuse as a child and this had affected him throughout his life.
Judge Mary Ellen Ring remanded Weldredge on continuing bail. He will be sentenced on July 31st.
