A 49-year-old man has denied in evidence to the Central Criminal Court that he raped and sexually assaulted his then seven-year-old daughter. He said that he had been "shocked and disgusted" when he heard that she had been sexually abused. "I didn't know how to deal with the situation. It was the last thing I expected. To think that such a thing could happen was unbelievable," he told his counsel, Mr Denis Vaughan Buckley SC.
Mr Justice Carney and the jury viewed a video-recording of two interviews conducted in January and February 1996 by a clinical psychologist, Ms Helen de Courcy, with the alleged victim.
The man, who is from the south-east, has pleaded not guilty to raping the girl on a date unknown between January 1st 1994 and December 5th 1995. He has also denied four other charges of incest, having unlawful carnal knowledge of her and sexually assaulting her.
Garda witnesses gave evidence that the defendant had denied the allegations at all times. He had signed two memos of notes taken from interviews with him and had gone voluntarily to the Garda station a week later to make a statement on his solicitor's advice.
When asked by gardai if he had sexually abused his daughter, the defendant replied: "In all honesty, no - no, no, a thousand times no."
He told gardai that he was not accusing his brother-in-law of having abused the girl, but he had his reservations. A Garda witness said he had not interviewed this man because he had no evidence against him. The witness agreed that the defendant's solicitor had written a letter suggesting that there had been an allegation by a babysitter some years earlier that this man had sexually interfered with her.
Cross-examined by Mr Michael A. Counihan SC, prosecuting, the defendant denied that he had turned to the alleged victim for relief from frustrations arising out his marriage difficulties.
The hearing continues today.