A man who sexually assaulted a neighbour's seven-year-old daughter slit his wrists on the following day, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court has been told.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded guilty to the assault on the girl on July 23rd, 1995.
Sgt Con Moynihan told Mr Fergal Kavanagh, prosecuting, that the accused man and his wife had offered to look after the girl and her five-year-old sister while their parents went out.
The couple took the girls to a pub where they stayed for four hours. The accused man's wife went home and he took the girls to a hotel car park where he sexually assaulted the older girl. He then took them to their home.
That night the victim was reluctant to undress while getting ready for bed. She then told her mother what had happened.
Sgt Moynihan said the accused man admitted himself the next day to a psychiatric hospital with self-inflicted wounds to his wrists. He remained there until August 1995.
Mr Martin Giblin, defending, said his client had a severe drink problem but had not taken alcohol in three years. Mr Giblin asked for a remand on continuing bail so the man could wind up his business affairs before being sentenced. Mr Kavanagh told the court there was no Garda objection to bail, provided the man stayed away from the victim.
Judge Frank O'Donnell warned the man that being granted bail would not make his sentence any lighter. He remanded him for sentence on January 20th, 1999. Judge O'Donnell also ordered victim impact and probation reports.