Gardai find evidence man sexually abused nieces after seizing phones on suspicion they contained child porn

A court heard the case had split a previously close family unit, with the two victims no longer having a relationship with their grandparents

Gardaí found evidence that a Wicklow man had sexually abused his two young nieces after seizing mobile phones from him on suspicion they contained images of child pornography.

A sitting of Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court last week heard that the case had split a previously close family unit, with the two victims no longer having a relationship with their grandparents.

A 28-year-old male from Wicklow, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault – one on each of the young girls. He also pleaded guilty to two offences relating to the possession and production of child pornography.

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Detective Garda David Smith told the court that Gardaí seized five mobile phones during a search of the defendant’s house in July 2020 after they had received information that child pornography might potentially be found there.

Gardaí found 943 images of child pornography on the devices, including 87 of children being sexually abused, as well as 33 videos, of which 18 were of the most serious type. Detective Garda Smith said a further search was carried out of the property in June 2021, when a computer was seized on which 110 images and 11 videos of child pornography were found.

After being arrested in July 2021, the witness said the defendant “pretty much denied all knowledge” of the images and videos. Detective Garda Smith said the accused claimed he had been sent a phone in the post from the UK with the images already on it, as well as suggesting young relatives who were in his house may have used his phones to take some of the images.

He told prosecution counsel, James Kelly BL, that Gardaí were able to identify two locations in Co Wicklow - including one tourist attraction - in the images which featured a child who was naked from the waist down. The court heard that screenshots, which had zoomed in on the child, were also taken, which constituted production of child pornography.

Two girls in the images were identified as nieces of the accused, while a third child was established to be the daughter of one of his online friends. Detective Garda Smith said the nieces are now aged nine and 16 but were much younger at the time of the offences.

He said the older girl told Gardaí that she had been touched in her genital area by the accused while they were sitting on a sofa with a blanket over them. The offending usually took place when he was helping his mother with babysitting his nieces. When questioned, Detective Garda Smith said the accused had denied all allegations of sexually assaulting the girls.

The court heard two items of children’s underwear – one belonging to each of his victims – was found in a drawer in his bedroom during a search of his home. In a victim impact statement, the girls' father said the accused had manipulated the situation with his nieces for his personal gratification. He expressed fear that the full extent of the damage to his daughters was “yet to become apparent”.

The witness said the accused had destroyed a significant part of what his older daughter held dear in her life and she now struggled to trust men, including her own brothers. He said she also did not want to be stigmatised by what happened to her and lived in fear that it would become public.

The court heard that she also lived in fear of meeting her abuser, who continued to work “without remorse or shame” near where she attended a sports activity. The man said his younger daughter was deeply hurt and damaged by her relative, whom he branded a “predator”.

He said his two daughters had also lost their relationship with their grandparents as they had supported the accused. In a separate statement, his wife told the court that the past three years had been “horrendous”.

The woman said she lived with “tremendous guilt” that she had not seen that there had been anything wrong with a brother she trusted and loved, but who had “groomed and abused” her girls. She said her older girl would never speak the accused’s name again and expressed sadness that one of their favourite places had forever been tarnished by what had happened there. “He has ruined lives and relationships,” she added.

Judge Patrick Quinn was also informed that the accused had received images from an online friend based in the UK of her daughter. The court heard that the accused had remarked in a text exchange in March 2021 that he knew how hard it had been for her to send him the images. He also observed that it was “hard for me to admit I wanted them”. In the same exchange he remarked: “So maybe I am a paedophile.”

Cross-examined by defence counsel, Paul Murray SC, Detective Garda Smith confirmed that there was no evidence that the accused had digitally penetrated either of the girls.

In evidence, the accused, who has two previous convictions for road traffic offences, apologised to his two victims as well as his sister and her husband, and said he was “truly sorry and deeply remorseful” for all the pain and suffering he had caused them. “I have no one to blame but myself,” he observed.

He asked them for forgiveness and expressed hope that at some stage in the future they could rebuild their relationship. His mother told the court that her son had been bullied in secondary school and had later been diagnosed with a neurological disorder.

She expressed her belief that her son had started finding friends on the internet following the breakdown of a relationship with a girlfriend. The witness said he had never hesitated from playing with his younger relatives and she regarded him as “just a big kid himself”.

She knew what her son did was wrong but stressed that he had “a heart of gold and would go out of his way to help others”. Mr Murray observed that the situation had been “an unmitigated disaster for the family caused by my client”.

Judge Quinn adjourned sentencing to allow for the preparation of a medical report after hearing the accused had been assessed at an “above average” risk of reoffending. He remanded the defendant on continuing bail.

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