A COUPLE living in Co Galway spent Christmas in prison having been arrested and charged on Christmas Eve with the neglect and abuse of their children over a 12-year period.
The 48-year-old man and his 45-year-old wife, who were brought before a special sitting of Galway District Court last Thursday, cannot be named for legal reasons.
The man faces 10 charges of raping four of his daughters and two charges of neglect and cruelty of his son. The rape offences are alleged to have occurred on dates between 1997 and April 2009 at the family home in Co Galway.
The incidents of cruelty and neglect are alleged to have taken place on dates between 2002 and 2004.
Det Garda Mary Hession gave evidence of arresting the man at 7.25 am on Christmas Eve. She told the court she took him to a Garda station where she cautioned him and put the 12 charges to him.
He had made no reply to two of the charges, and to the remaining 10 he replied: “I didn’t do it.”
Det Garda Kieran McNamara gave evidence of arresting the children’s mother at 7.25 am on Christmas Eve also. She faces 18 charges relating to the cruelty and neglect of her children between May 2002 and June of this year.
The charges allege that she assaulted, ill-treated, neglected, abandoned or otherwise treated the children in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to their health or seriously affect their wellbeing.
The court was told that the woman made no reply to the first 17 charges. In reply to the last charge, she said: “It’s not true.”
The Garda applied to Judge Geoffrey Browne to have the couple remanded in custody The couple’s solicitor, Sheena McCarthy, said she was not applying for bail.
Judge Browne remanded the couple in custody to appear again at a special sitting of Ennis District Court tomorrow.