Sex offender sentenced to 14 years for rape and sexual abuse

A convicted sex offender has been sentenced to 14 years for raping a boy and sexually abusing another child 20 years later.

Associates of the victims told Kenneth Cooke (53) to “enjoy his time in prison” and to “rot in there” as he was led away to begin the sentence.

Cooke is already serving a nine-year sentence imposed in 2014 for the sexual abuse of a female victim 20 years ago. The severity of the sentence was later upheld on appeal.

Cooke of Limekiln Green, Walkinstown, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 21 counts of sexually assaulting a boy between January 2000 and July 2003 when the boy was aged between 11 and 13 years of age.

He had pleaded not guilty to 56 counts of indecent assault of another boy between December 1980 and December 1985 and was convicted by a jury.

On Wednesday Judge Patricia Ryan imposed a nine-year sentence with four suspended for abuse of the first boy which began in 1980. She also imposed an 11-year sentence with two suspended for the abuse of the second boy 13 years ago.

These will run consecutive to each other but alongside his existing sentence meaning an effective prison term of 14 years from today.

Judge Ryan took the unusual move of imposing consecutive terms because of the “very, very, very serious” nature of the offending.