A Belfast man who kept his eight-year-old niece in Dublin for three weeks to rape her instead of bringing her on an arranged trip to Butlin's was jailed for 12 years yesterday.
When Mr Justice Smith imposed sentence in the Circuit Criminal Court yesterday, the defendant's former Dublin girlfriend, who gave evidence on behalf of the prosecution during his trial in July, held hands with the victim's mother and said: "Yes, yes".
The 31-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was jailed for 10 months in April 1997 by the District Court for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in Dublin in January 1996.
He was convicted last July by a jury of raping and sexually assaulting his niece in his Inchicore flat on dates from June 17th to August 8th, 1995. He denied the charges.
Defence counsel Mr Hugh Hartnett said his client claimed both his parents were alcoholics and there had been a high level of violence in the family home.
Mr Hartnett also asked the judge to consider when sentencing that his client came from a unionist area of Belfast which had a culture that would not be shared by his fellow-prisoners here. Rejecting this final submission Mr Justice Smith said he had no option but to impose a lengthy sentence.
The man's niece told the jury by video-link how he persuaded her mother to let him bring her to Dublin for a holiday. He said he would bring her to Butlin's with his girlfriend and other children. Instead they stayed in Dublin, where the assaults took place.