A 77-year-old man was arrested at his Cork home on Tuesday and charged with sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl on five occasions in 2022.
Sergeant Sheena Dowling made the arrest and transported the man to Bridewell Garda Station. He was subsequently charged with five counts of sexual assault, allegedly occurring between January and May 2022 at his residence.
After being informed of his right to remain silent, and that any statement could be used as evidence, the man responded: “I will wait to see my brief.”
Judge Philip O’Leary at Cork District Court imposed a prohibition on the identification of involved parties due to the nature of the case.
Inspector Ray Dunne stated that the Director of Public Prosecutions has directed a trial by indictment at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, and also agreed to accepting a guilty plea at the district court level for sentencing at the circuit court.
Solicitor Frank Buttimer requested a book of evidence. Judge O’Leary adjourned the proceedings until September 10th for the book’s presentation.
Sgt Dowling stated there were no objections to granting bail to the accused under certain conditions. Mr. Buttimer confirmed that the defense agreed to the proposed bail terms.
These conditions include: no direct or indirect contact with the victim or any witnesses; residing at his current home address and notifying authorities immediately of any address changes; daily signing at his local Garda station; providing a contact number and being available to gardaí at all times; and surrendering his passport and all travel documents, with a prohibition from applying for replacements.
