A man who fantasised that he was John Wayne has been jailed for seven years for raping the same woman three times over a number of years.
The court heard that he told his victim while he had sex with her to call him "John" and explained that it was because he always fancied himself as John Wayne and "a bit of a cowboy". The court also heard that he wore cowboy boots and a cowboy hat and was of low intellect.
Neville Cornwall (31), of Ardgallon, Boyle, Co Sligo, who is divorced with two children, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to raping the 29-year-old woman on March 17th, 1992, and November 21st, 1996, in Co Sligo, and again on January 3rd, 1997, in Co Roscommon.
His victim tried to drown herself in her bath after one of the rapes.
Mr Justice Carney said he took into consideration the absence of aggravated assault in this case but he could not ignore the severe effect the crimes had on the victim.
Garda John Nicholson told Ms Miriam Reynolds SC, prosecuting, that Cornwall fully accepted what he had done and admitted to raping his victim in a statement to gardai.
The first two rapes occurred after Cornwall and his victim had been drinking in a pub. He had walked her home each time.
Though she told him on the first occasion that she was involved with someone else, Cornwall insisted that she let him into the flat. Once inside he had sexual intercourse with her against her will.
Garda Nicholson said Cornwall was disappointed she did not invite him into her flat again on the second occasion but he returned and climbed through a back window and raped her.
The third rape occurred when Cornwall met his victim by accident in Sligo and drove her to a village in Co Roscommon.
He raped her in a forest park and then left her there to thumb a lift back to Sligo.
Mr Desmond Dockery, defending, asked Mr Justice Carney to consider that the crimes were not associated with any assaults and the defendant was not a man of full intellectual capacity.
He said the incidents were "out of character" and he had met his victim by accident on each occasion and did not follow her.