Charged with 14 counts of sexual assault against a minor

An Oldcastle man was found guilty of sexually assaulting his younger cousin on numerous occasions while they were both juveniles.

The man in his 40s was charged with 14 counts of sexual assault against a minor in Trim Circuit Court. It was alleged that between 21st September 1996 and 27th August 2000 the accused sexually assaulted a minor on multiple occasions in the regions of Blackcastle, Newcastle, and Oldcastle. The incidents occurred when the victim was aged between 10 and 14 and the accused was aged between 14 and 18.

The injured party told the court these incidents occurred on “umpteen” occasions across the span of four years between 1996 and 2000. They are alleged to have occurred in a bedroom on the property where the accused lived, a mobile home on the same property, and numerous other locations across Blackcastle, Newcastle, and Oldcastle. The injured party told the court the accused committed the offence any time he was given the opportunity to and it is hard to recall all the specific times it happened because they blur together. The court heard the victim only remembers clearly the times when they were nearly caught.

The Defending barrister, SC Barry Ward, told the court that there was no mobile home at the premises during this period. Satellite image taken between 1996 and 2001 during the time of the alleged incidents was shown to the court which the defence told the court revealed the mobile home was not at the premises. Detective Garda Ray Flynn told the court he remembered there was a caravan at the home when he was employed in the Oldcastle region during this period when the alleged offences were taking place.

The trial began on 4th November and concluded with a guilty verdict on 10th November. The accused is to be in court on 27th January to fix a date for sentencing.