Man jailed for nine years for repeated sexual abuse of girl (12)

Fiona Ferguson

A 20-year-old man who sexually abused a 12-year-old girl over a two month period four years ago has been jailed for nine years.

Thomas Osborne, now 25-years-old, had “taken advantage” of being alone with the child and subjected her to a “deeply traumatic series of sexual assaults”.

The Central Criminal Court heard that the teenage girl, who is entitled to anonymity as a complainant and can not be identified as she is a minor, did not have an issue with Osborne being named.

Osborne, with an address at Oakfield Street, Cardiff, Wale,s pleaded guilty to oral rape, five counts of sexual assault and inviting or inducing the girl to touch his penis at a location in Leinster, on dates between December 2020 and February 2021.

He has no previous convictions and has been in custody since June.

DVD evidence

Osborne pleaded guilty to the offences after his trial had opened and the child’s evidence played by DVD but before she was cross-examined.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Paul McDermott said the young child had been subjected to a “deeply traumatic series of sexual assaults”. He said she had given a very articulate and moving account of how she had been affected and the extent of harm inflicted.

He said her teenage years should not have been dominated by these offences, but had been.

Mr Justice McDermott highlighted the breach of trust involved in the repeated offending of a young girl by a much older man. He said Osborne knew she was a child and had taken advantage of being left alone with her.

The judge noted Osborne had told her that what he was doing was illegal and not to tell anyone, and had also persisted despite her saying she did not want to do it.

He said there was an extensive probation report before the court outlining Osborne’s background and experiences, but it did not explain why the offending had happened or why he had done it.

He said the report detailed some engagement with the offending, but there was some indication of minimisation and that there was not a full understanding of the damage done, indicating a need for offence-focused intervention. He said drink and substance abuse issues also needed to be addressed.

Mr Justice McDermott said he also had to take into account the risk of future offending.

He said these were “horrible crimes committed against a very young girl”. He set a headline sentence of 11 years before taking into account mitigation.

He took into account the guilty pleas, noting they had come at a late stage, as well as Osborne's remorse, and his lack of prior convictions. He said Osborne’s personal circumstances did not explain the nature of this offending, but indicated where he will have to do work in the future.

Mr Justice McDermott imposed a sentence of ten years imprisonment with the final year suspended on conditions including that he have no contact with the injured party through social media or otherwise and not be in the company of children unless under supervision.

An investigating garda told Paul Murray SC, prosecuting, that the abuse came to light after the girl told her mother what had happened and gardaí became involved.

Osborne, who had subsequently moved to Wales, was interviewed there by gardaí in 2023 and denied the allegations.

In her victim impact statement, the girl outlined the devastating harm and trauma the offending had caused in her life. She said she had grown up faster than she should have and was terrified of men.

She told Osborne he knew what he was doing was wrong, but still chose to do it, leaving her feeling used and worthless. She said Osborne had taken her childhood and teenage years away and she could never forgive him for that.

Her mother told the court that her daughter now walks through life with a heaviness on her shoulders as if she is bracing for something bad to happen. She said she wished she could go back and protect her from what had happened.

'Unnecessary anxiety'

Padraig Dwyer SC, defending, told the court that Osborne accepts full responsibility for all his actions and apologises to the victim for his wrongdoing. He asked the court to take into account Osborne’s guilty plea, which obviated the need for the girl to be cross-examined.

He said Osborne recognises that the initial denial on his part led to the matter going to trial and he accepts that it caused the injured party unnecessary anxiety.

Mr Dwyer outlined that Osborne came from a dysfunctional background marked by drug abuse. He had a limited education and work history. He asked the court to take into account his previous good character.

Counsel noted the probation report placed Osborne at moderate to medium risk of reoffending and said Osborne is willing to undergo probation supervision and intervention.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.