A young woman has told a jury in the Central Criminal Court that she was sexually abused in her Co Kilkenny home by her granduncle once a week from 1985 to 1992.
The 49-year-old man is denying 16 charges in relation to her, but he has already affirmed signed District Court pleas of guilty to six others. The jury has heard these pleas refer to sexual and indecent assault of his alleged victim.
The woman, now 18, said the abuse started when she was about seven. She had just come out of a hospital after a serious operation. He warned her not to tell anyone as she was "only a child" and would not be believed.
She was giving evidence on the first day of the man's trial.
The defendant has denied one charge of raping the alleged victim in 1994 and a charge of attempting to commit oral rape on her on an unknown date in 1992.
The other 14 charges relate to alleged indecent, sexual and aggravated sexual assault.
The woman told prosecution counsel Mr Michael Durack SC that she came from a large family of children. The accused used to visit one of her neighbours.
She said she had a serious operation in 1985 and recalled that the abuse started when she came out of hospital. It may have started before the operation but she was not sure of that.
Initially the abuse consisted of touching and progressed to digital penetration. The abuse normally took place in the living room and sometimes in the kitchen.
She said that in 1992 he came to her house when her parents were out. She was in a bedroom and he pushed her on to the bed. He attempted to have oral sex with her, but she resisted. Afterwards he went downstairs and her mother arrived home.
When he tried to have sex with her in 1994 she again resisted. Around Christmas 1995 he was in her house again while others were there. "He was looking at me and giving me the eye," she said.
A month later she told a friend and then her mother about the alleged abuse.
Mr Denis Vaughan Buckley SC, defending, said his client made an immediate statement admitting he had sexually assaulted the alleged victim from when she was 11 to 1994.
But Mr Vaughan Buckley said his client would totally reject suggestions that he had attempted intercourse, oral sex or penetrated her digitally.
The trial before Mr Justice Flood and a jury continues.