Woman allegedly abused by 7 family members told claims 'hard to believe' as they are untrue

Isabel Hayes

A woman who was allegedly sexually abused by seven of her family members has been told her allegations against one brother are “hard to believe” because they are not true.

Defence counsel for one of the defendants, referred to as Accused C, told the complainant on Friday that she has told different stories to gardaí and the Central Criminal Court jury about what allegedly happened to her at the hands of her younger brother.

Karl Finnegan SC, defending, was cross-examining the main complainant, who is deaf, in relation to the allegations against his client, her 34-year-old brother.

This man, referred to as Accused C, is accused of 45 counts against this complainant – 22 of rape and 23 counts of anally raping her over a 12-year period between 2001 and 2013. He is also accused of sexual abuse against two of his younger sisters. He has denied the charges.

Mr Finnegan put it to the woman that she told “one story to gardaí about what (Accused C) did to you” and then “told a different story to the jury”. “Do you agree or disagree?” he asked.

“They're the same stories,” the woman replied.

Mr Finnegan further submitted that the woman told “one story” to the jury when she was being examined by the prosecution late last year and then a “different story” this week in relation to the allegations against Accused C. The woman again replied that they were the same stories.

“What you have told the jury about Accused C is hard to believe because it is not the truth, do you agree or disagree with that?” Mr Finnegan asked.

“You're wrong,” the woman replied.

Earlier this week, the court heard the woman told gardaí that, among other allegations, she was raped by Accused C when she was seven years old. Defence counsel put it to the woman that this could not be possible as he would have been aged four at the time.

The woman is giving evidence via video-link and through two interpreters – an Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreter and a deaf relay – as well as an intermediary who is a linguistics expert. There are also two interpreter monitoring teams present in court to ensure the woman is being interpreted correctly.

Charts and symbols are also being used to assist the woman to communicate, with the court hearing she has challenges communicating timelines in terms of calendars and sequence.

Seven men, aged between 32 and 55, are on trial in the Central Criminal Court in relation to a combined total of 103 charges against them – of which 98 counts pertain to the main complainant. They are her four younger brothers and three uncles.

They are accused of sexually abusing her at various stages over a 17-year period between 1996 and 2013 and deny any wrongdoing. None of the parties involved can be named for legal reasons.

The trial continues before Ms Justice Biggs and an extended jury panel of 14 jurors.

Charges

Accused A – the woman's 55-year-old uncle - is accused of a single count of raping her on a date between December 2009 and April 2011. He has denied the charge.

Accused B (48) – another uncle - is accused of eight counts comprising rape, oral rape and anal rape of the complainant on dates between December 2008 and December 2010. He has denied the charges.

Another three of her younger brothers are also accused of sexually abusing her over varying periods of time.

Accused D (33) is accused of 22 counts of sexually abusing his sister over an 11-year period on dates between 2002 and 2013. He has pleaded not guilty to 19 charges of rape and three counts of anal rape.

Accused E (32) is accused of 16 counts of sexual abuse against his sister over an eight-year period between 2003 and 2011. He has denied nine counts of anal rape and seven counts of raping her.

Another brother, Accused F (also 32), has denied five counts – three counts of anal rape and two counts of raping his sister on dates between 2007 and 2010.

A third uncle, Accused G (45), has denied a single count of raping her on a date between 1996 and 1997.

Accused C is further charged with the sexual abuse of two of his younger sisters. He is charged with one count of sexual assault in relation to one sister, Complainant 2, on a date between 2005 and 2006 when she was a child. He is also charged with two counts of rape and one of anal rape of this woman on dates between 2016 and 2019.

He is also charged with one count of anally raping a third sister, Complainant 3, on dates between 2013 and 2014.

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. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.