Man convicted of raping ex-girlfriend at their workplace jailed for five years

Fiona Ferguson

A man convicted of raping his former girlfriend at their workplace has been jailed for five years.

The 29-year-old accused man, who cannot be identified to protect the anonymity of the victim, was convicted by a jury at the Central Criminal Court of rape of the woman at a location in the southeast of the country on a date in January 2020. He has no previous convictions.

An investigating garda told John O’Kelly SC, prosecuting, that the accused and complainant were at the time in the early stages of a romantic relationship. It was not a sexual relationship, and the complainant had discussed not feeling ready for that stage.

The court heard it was an “on/off affair” and the accused felt she was not prioritising the relationship. The couple had broken up by text, but when they went to work that morning and met, they kissed. He helped her with a problem she was having with her back.

The accused man went to have a shower in the locker room area and she took his phone as part of a joke between them. She gave it back to him, he kissed her and backed her into a shower cubicle.

She told him she had to get back to work, but he continued with what he was doing, locked the door of the cubicle and had sex with her.

She left to go back to work but confided in a colleague, and later gardaí were called.

The accused man said to a colleague that he had gotten carried away and made admissions. He was arrested when gardaí arrived and made further admissions.

Evidence

The court heard that he later gave evidence at trial that the apologies he made in the aftermath were for poor sexual performance and breaching workplace rules.

In her victim impact statement, the woman told the court that the events of that day changed her life forever. She said that each time over the past six years she has tried to move on it is brought up again, and she is continually traumatized by having to go to court.

There were two trials which were aborted before the accused man was convicted.

She described the adverse effects on her physical and mental health, and on her relationships.

The garda agreed with Colman Fitzgerald SC, defending, that the accused man had complied with all bail conditions and voluntarily stayed away from the area.

Fitzgerald told the court the accused does not accept the verdict of the jury and his client still maintains that he did not know consent had been withdrawn.

He handed in testimonials to his client’s good character from friends and family who have known the accused all his life. He also recounted how the accused had helped a person who was in danger.

Psychological report

He asked the judge to also consider the content of a psychological report before the court.

The court heard that Section 40 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018 does not apply in this case as this offence occurred at the beginning of a relationship which never became a sexual relationship.

This section requires a court to treat the intimate relationship between an offender and victim as an aggravating factor when sentencing for certain offences.

Passing sentence on Wednesday, Mr Justice Paul Burns set a headline sentence of seven years imprisonment, before considering mitigation.

He noted the man had said at the time that he found himself in a confusing situation, but said he did not accept that, also noting the man had tried to explain away his apologies at trial.

The judge said the man had a supportive family and had performed good deeds in the past. He took into account he is in a stable relationship.

He said the man has an average risk of recidivism and had cooperated generally with the investigation. He said the probation report stated he had not expressed remorse or sufficient insight into the harm caused.

Mr Justice Burns imposed a six-year sentence and suspended the final year for three years on conditions including that he complies any courses or therapy recommended by the probation service.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.