A 62-YEAR-OLD man has been sentenced to 15 years, with three years suspended, after a court heard how he sexually assaulted eight girls as young as six.
The attacks, apart from two, occurred after he enticed the children to his house with the promise of sweets and a chance to play on his PlayStation.
Billy O'Brien from Curraghglass, Fermoy, Co Cork, pleaded guilty at Cork Circuit Criminal Court yesterday to a total of 46 counts of sexual assault on the girls between 1992 and 2001 mainly at his home in Curraghglass.
O'Brien admitted 17 counts of sexual assault in relation to one girl, 10 each in relation to another two, four counts in relation to another girl, two counts in relation to another girl and then single counts in relation to another three girls.
Det Sgt Seán Leahy said all but two of the assaults happened at O'Brien's home, where he lived alone, and where he set up a PlayStation and "a shop" with sweets which he used to entice the girls over so that he could abuse them.
Det Sgt Leahy said the girls ranged in age from six to 10 years of age when they were abused, but O'Brien admitted to gardaí that he lost interest in them as they got older and he began targeting younger girls.
O'Brien was trusted by the girls's parents as he had grown up with some of them and he was held in high esteem. He was a very obliging handyman who used to help with house repairs. He also used to make video recordings of Holy Communion and Confirmation ceremonies.
Det Sgt Leahy said that O'Brien abused the girls by touching their private parts - sometimes through their clothing and sometimes inside their clothing. On some occasions he forced them to touch his private parts and he also rubbed himself against them.
O'Brien used to abuse the girls by getting them to sit on his lap and while most of the abuse happened when girls were visiting him on their own, on two occasions he abused two girls simultaneously, while one victim told how he video-taped himself abusing her.
Although all the girls knew each other and some were related, none ever confided in each other that they were being abused by O'Brien even though some of them suspected and were concerned for others in their families, the court heard.
The offences came to light at the end of 2005 when one of the girls noticed O'Brien befriending a new family and realised that he was trying to groom their two young daughters, so she warned the girls' mother and that woman in turn informed gardaí.
An investigation was launched which resulted in eight women coming forward with complaints. A file was sent to the DPP who consented to the matter being dealt with at District Court level but Judge Terence Finn refused jurisdiction, meaning it had to go to a higher court.
Det Sgt Leahy said O'Brien admitted the abuse when confronted but that was the only good thing he could say about him. "He never expressed remorse. He didn't even apologise for all the suffering he caused them; he believed he was doing nothing wrong."
Det Sgt Leahy confirmed that O'Brien, who lived in England from 1959 to 1970, had no previous convictions of any kind but he was concerned about the possibility of him re-offending. "I believe he is a risk, a very serious risk to young girls," he told the court.
Three of O'Brien's eight victims gave victim impact statements where they spoke of how he had ruined their lives by breaching the trust their parents had placed in him and their own fears about coming forward and their guilt over not doing so to save others from abuse.
Judge Patrick Moran commended all their girls for their bravery in coming forward and sentenced O'Brien to three consecutive terms of five years with the last three years suspended on condition that he leave Curraghglass upon his release.
Victim impact statements: three girls tell their stories
Miss A
"Everyone in our local community had Billy on such a
pedestal; he was considered such an upstanding member of the
community and he would put such effort into going out of his way to
be so helpful to so many families and people.
At the time Billy was considered an upstanding member of the community . . . the perception was that he was just fantastic . . . he was always there to lend a hand.
This translates to one inevitable truth - that a child would not be believed over such a respectable, reputable adult.
"There was no one I felt I could tell, no one to confide in. I remember then and those feelings of isolation, sadness, confusion, hurt and helplessness, as I still feel them today just as strong.
"To this day, I still feel nauseous and angry to think that someone is capable of planning, scheming, manipulating that must be so involved, not to mention carrying out such evil things.
I feel so ashamed to ever have spent time in his presence.
"But the worst association I have is that of regret - that I didn't speak up at the time; I could have prevented so much for so many people.
I will never find words to describe this."
Miss B
"It was as if Billy was interesting to me, he knew
lots of stuff I wanted to know about. He built up a huge amount of
trust and manipulated me into believing everything he told, which I
now feel so stupid to have fallen for it all.
"People loved his woodwork and they used to say he was wasted and that he 'was great with his hands' and when I heard that, it drove me insane and I'd think to myself 'if only you knew'. If I hear people saying that about him, it just send shudders through me. I used to go to bed crying, nearly in pain at the fact what had happened to the others when I wasn't there. I tried to get the courage to write a letter to Billy and tell him I knew and to stop at everyone else or I'd tell the guards, but I never got that courage.
"It drives me mad that I never did anything. I used to pray to my Granddad and God to make him stop . . . I prayed and prayed and cried and cried that he would just stop and that if he ever touched my baby cousin . . . I would never forgive myself.
"All the times, I watched the news with my father listening to other sexual abuse cases and Daddy saying 'He's some dirty yoke' . . . I used to sit there and think to myself 'I'll tell him now, I'll tell him now' but I just couldn't open my mouth."
Miss C
"The impact of these circumstances on my life are
horrendous. It has impacted on me in so many ways and I feel I will
never be free of it. I feel a big impact is the effect it has on my
personality. The trauma and hardship that has resulted is
devastating.
"I am a different person as a result of these incidents. My behaviour and mood has changed enormously and I am no longer the happy person that loved life. I am withdrawn and extremely upset on a regular basis. Also I feel I have got very angry towards life . . . It is bad enough to be thinking about it every day when I feel I have nowhere to escape to. At least at night I feel I have peace from all the torment and reminders, but when it affects my sleep as well it is no longer bearable.
"I have woken several nights crying because I have had another nightmare . . . I just feel it is not fair that I have gone through all this when I am the victim. I have done nothing wrong yet I am the one suffering. I just want freedom where I don't feel trapped at home and where I don't have a constant headache over the situation. I just want a day where it is all over and I can finally say to myself that tomorrow is the start of my new life and a life where I am free.