Man who treated cleaner as a slave and ‘sex object’ jailed for 15 years

A man who raped a woman who was working as a cleaner for him has been jailed for 15 years after a judge said the man had “treated her like a slave” and a “sex object”.

His victim, a non national, became pregnant after she was raped by the man who had been introduced to her as “a good guy” who could help her with some financial difficulties.

The 68-year-old Polish man has convictions for rape in Poland and has served a three-year prison sentence for a threat to kill following an Irish conviction.

The woman was first introduced to the man while she and her partner were struggling financially having moved to Ireland.

The couple were living in Galway when the woman took up an offer of accommodation at the man’s home, along with her two daughters, on the understanding that she would work as a cleaner for him.

The woman and her partner were also going through a difficult time in their relationship as he was drinking heavily.

The accused man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the woman, was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury last July on two counts of rape and four counts of oral rape on dates between January 1st, 2012 and September 18th, 2016.

On Wednesday Ms Justice Tara Burns described the woman's victim impact report as "chilling".

“It is short but it reveals the depths of destruction he caused,” the judge said before she added that the woman “legitimately” continues to live in fear.

“He treated her like a slave, an item to be possessed,” Ms Justice Burns said before she added that at the time, the woman, “with just cause, saw no way out”.

‘Almost unbelievable’

She said the offences are of “the most serious kind, veering towards almost unbelievable”.

Ms Justice Burns described as “horrifying” that in modern times the man had “possessed, controlled and falsely imprisoned the woman for his own sexual gratification”.

“He used her as a sex object,” the judge continued.

She said the man used “control and dominance over the woman and her family” using threats and violence within the background of a serious criminal history.

Ms Justice Burns said there was “no mitigating factors in the case” and that a life sentence would be appropriate before she took into account the man’s age and health issues and imposed a sentence of 15 years.

Kenneth Fogarty SC, defending, told the court at a previous hearing last week, that his client did not accept the jury verdict. He said his client had a number of medical issues including cardiac problems.

He said given the man’s age and health issues, the usual tariff could mean the man would spend the rest of his life in prison.

He asked the court to take into account the isolation of a foreign national convicted of these offences who does not speak English and would not expect many visitors during his period of incarceration.

Victim impact report

In a victim impact report the woman stated that she found it impossible to discuss what her life was before the rapes and “what it is now”.

She said life with her partner before she met the accused had not been easy, but she was happy.

The woman said the accused destroyed her life and that of her partner’s and their family. She added: “He only told me how to kneel, obey and be quiet”.

She said she hoped he would be imprisoned for many years so he could not hurt another woman before adding that she does not sleep because she is still afraid. She said she doesn’t have an intimate relationship with her partner.

The woman said her youngest daughter, who was conceived during the rape, would never be the man’s child, “just mine”.

Garda Patrick Foley told Patrick McGrath SC, prosecuting, that shortly after the woman moved into the man’s home, he began to demand sex from her. She managed to fend off a number of advances before he raped her following a New Year Eve’s party they attended together.

The woman left the man’s house the following day and returned to live with her partner but never disclosed the rape to him until the following Easter.

Garda Foley said she was raped a second time in an abandoned farmhouse close to the man’s home, while she was still working as his cleaner.

He was then jailed for three years in 2013 following the conviction for the threat to kill. He returned to Poland when he was released from prison but came back to Galway in 2016.

Confronted

The man then made contact with the couple again before moving into their home.

It was during his time living with the couple that the man forced the woman to perform oral sex on him on four occasions.

At one point her partner confronted him over the previous rapes but he was assaulted by the accused. Garda Foley confirmed that both the woman and her partner were in fear of the accused.

In September 2016, while the woman’s partner was being treated in hospital, he told a nurse what was happening with the accused and she alerted the gardaí.

The man was ultimately arrested after he was tasered by officers who believed there was a “threat to life” because of an indication that the man had a weapon with him in the house.

Garda Foley confirmed the man was interviewed four times but denied raping the woman.

He claimed he had been in a consensual sexual relationship with the woman, that he had a baby with her and that he was involved in his daughter’s life. He said the woman was using him for financial aid.

The woman did not return to Ireland during the trial or for the sentence hearing but her victim impact report was read into the record. Her evidence in the trial was given via video link.