A 20-year-old Tipperary man has been convicted by a jury at the Central Criminal Court in Limerick of raping a 75-year-old pensioner at her home two years ago.
Joseph Cummins, St Joseph's Park, Nenagh, Co Tipperary had denied two counts of raping the woman on May 22nd 2005 and a further charge of stealing money from her home on the same date.
After the unanimous guilty verdict, it was revealed that Cummins had 60 previous convictions. The court also heard Cummins was on bail at the time he committed the rape, which Mr Justice Paul Carney described as an "appalling outrage", on his elderly victim.
During the week long trial the 75-year-old victim gave a harrowing account of how she was raped twice by an intruder at her home on the night of May 22nd 2005. She said she tried to scream but had a pain in her chest and couldn't catch her breath, the court heard.
The court was told when Cummins left the house with her purse containing about €135 he warned her not to call the gardai.
A forensic scientist told the court that the pensioner's DNA was found on underwear belonging to the accused man. Before dismissing the jury Judge Paul Carney complimented the gardai from Nenagh on their work in the case.
Mr Justice Carney declared Mr Cummins a sex offender and remanded him in custody. Sentencing in the case will take place on March 12th next at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.