The state has dropped the case against a man who was charged with the brutal rape of an elderly woman in a Dublin park two years ago.
The 70-year-old victim had been "left for dead" by her attacker following the rape and a severe beating, a jury in the Central Criminal Court was told during the trial of a Ballymun man in December.
The jury was discharged on the fourth day of the trial following legal argument by defence counsel Mr Anthony Sammon SC.
Mr George Birmingham, prosecuting, told Mr Justice Carney yesterday that the Director of Public Prosecutions was entering a nolle prosequi. The accused man was discharged. The man had denied charges of rape, aggravated sexual assault and sexual assault of the woman at Albert Park, Glasnevin, on August 5th, 1996.
He had also pleaded not guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent to maim, disfigure or disable her and to another charge of wounding her with intent.
The victim was not called on to give evidence. It was agreed her statement could be read to the jury to avoid putting her through the trauma of testifying.
The woman told gardai she had gone to the park on the bank holiday between 8.30 and 8.45 a.m. She did not see anyone there apart from one jogger. She planned to walk around the park with her dog before going to Mass at 10 a.m.
She was walking towards the Ballymun Road side of the park when a man appeared in front of her. She next remembered being on the ground. She assumed he had hit her.
She said she called for help and tried to get her dog to intervene, but he only barked. She could not remember the rape as she apparently lost consciousness during the attack. She could not describe her assailant but said it was not the jogger she had seen earlier.
The court was told other witnesses, who were in their houses at the time, heard a dog barking and high-pitched screams. It was now known these screams came from the victim.
Medical evidence showed the woman had sustained a facial fracture, bruising and other injuries.