A man has been jailed for two years for sexually assaulting a young woman who went to view his house after he advertised that he had a room to rent.
Cork Circuit Criminal Court heard Leon O’Connor (36), who has an address in Uam Var Drive, Bishopstown in Cork, was suffering from an undiagnosed mental illness when he carried out the offending behaviour on December 29th, 2021.
Det Sgt Michelle O’Leary said the injured party had responded to an advertisement for a room for rent. O’Connor said he was looking for a female tenant “as they were easier to get on with” and also indicated he did not want a smoker or drinker.
Det Sgt O’Leary said that while setting up the viewing over the phone O’Connor asked the woman if she was in a relationship. She thought this was an “unusual question”. The woman was driven to the property by her brother, but O’Connor told her he only wanted her to enter the property. He cited health concerns amid the pandemic as the reason for not allowing her brother in. Her brother waited in the car.
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The defendant invited her in to see the room for rent. She noticed knives on the bookcase. O’Connor closed the curtains and told her he was doing so to “prevent a draught”.
Det Sgt O’Leary said the young woman “felt uneasy”.
“He touched her on a number of occasions going around the house. He touched her buttocks. She was afraid he had a weapon. He brushed his hand against her left breast. As they moved through the house she tried to remain calm. While showing her the room, he stood beside her. He caressed her vagina area.”
The detective said the woman was extremely frightened and said she would need to speak to her brother before deciding whether to rent the room.
The young woman reported the matter to gardaí, saying she was frightened O’Connor would “lure other females to his house”, Det Sgt O’Leary said.
In a victim impact statement the woman said she lost her spark after the incident.
“As a result of what happened to me I lost my confidence, my mental health deteriorated massively, and subsequently my relationships failed ... All this happened at my worst time. I was homeless, out of work,“ she said.
“I genuinely didn’t know what was going to happen to me, and the 11 or so minutes in that house alone with him felt like an eternity.”
Judge Helen Boyle accepted there was “ample evidence of a severe psychiatric illness” in the case. A jury previously found O’Connor guilty of sexually assaulting the woman three times during the 11- minute visit.
Judge Boyle described the woman as a “brave” person who was doing her best to get out of a bad situation in her own life when the offence occurred.
“I want to convey my admiration for her and wish her the best. I want to thank her,” the judge said.
She noted O’Connor was a well-educated man who worked to a high level.
O’Connor has no previous convictions.
