A 26-year-old man, Billy Diver, has been sentenced to three years in prison for sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman in Swan Park, Buncrana. Diver admitted to the assault, claiming he “misread signals” from the victim.
Diver appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to the sexual assault, which occurred on the evening of June 24th, 2020.
At the time of the incident, Diver, then 20, was with a friend when they encountered two young women sitting on a bench in the park during Covid restrictions.
Garda Keith Conlon presented details of the incident, led by state barrister Ms. Fiona Crawford, BL.
The women were walking in the park around 8 PM when Diver and his friend initiated a conversation with them.
As the women continued walking, the two men approached them again.
Diver then grabbed one of the women and dragged her towards some trees, grabbing her backside.
The woman testified that Diver then forced her hand onto his penis. When she pulled away, he touched her vagina over her clothing.
The woman, feeling scared, moved away, but the men approached them again. Diver then placed his hand on her thigh and attempted to touch her vagina again before reaching down the back of her trousers and grabbing her backside.
While on the phone with a friend, crying and repeatedly asking him to stop, Diver grabbed her backside once more and attempted to kiss her neck and lips.
As the men left in a van, the young woman managed to photograph Diver while others came to her assistance.
A mother and daughter present in the park also filmed the men leaving and provided their accounts to Gardai.
The two women sought assistance from another couple, explaining their distress.
This couple contacted Gardai, providing a description of the van.
Gardai arrived shortly after to find the distressed women, who provided details of the assault and a possible name for one of the men.
Later, Diver went to Buncrana Garda Station to report being harassed in the park, claiming a mother and daughter were filming him.
He was identified as the accused in the sexual assault case.
When questioned, Diver initially claimed the interactions were consensual, stating the woman took his hands, smiled, and they went behind a ditch.
He said he then noticed he was being recorded.
Diver’s clothing was seized, and he was identified through phone footage.
The court heard that Diver is from Derry and had no prior criminal convictions.
In a victim impact statement, the young woman described how the assault significantly impacted her life.
She experiences great anxiety leaving her home, constantly fearing another attack. She suffers from recurring nightmares and can no longer visit Swan Park due to the traumatic memories.
She battles feelings of depression, shame, and self-blame, struggles to trust others, and finds it difficult to form new relationships.
She also required time off work for counselling, causing financial strain, and her studies and career aspirations have been negatively affected.
“It has changed the course of my life, and I am scarred for life inside,” she stated.
Mr. Peter Nolan, BL, representing Diver, argued that his client misinterpreted “signals” from the young woman.
He claimed the women looked at Diver and his friend and giggled, leading him to misread the situation and approach them.
Mr. Nolan emphasized that Diver did not attempt to hide or deny anything during his interview.
Diver’s barrister maintained that his client misread the situation and should have exercised more caution.
Addressing Diver’s background, Mr. Nolan stated that he left school at 14, was not academically inclined, but had a consistent employment history, working as a labourer in Northern Ireland.
The Probation Service assessed him as a moderate to high risk of reoffending, adding that he has no medical problems, is suitable for community service, and willing to comply with Probation Services.
Mr. Nolan reiterated that Diver “misread the signals very, very badly,” needs to mature in his sexual behaviour, and is genuinely sorry for his actions.
Diver addressed the court, offering a “deep apology” to the woman, expressing his remorse “from the bottom of my heart.”
He acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and expressed his profound regret.
Judge John Aylmer, passing sentence, described the assault as “a very nasty sexual assault on a young woman in a public park,” stating that her behavior did not invite the actions and that she was clearly being harassed by Diver.
He emphasized the frightening nature of the experience for the young woman, noting her ongoing anxiety and depression.
The judge categorized the offense as mid-range, warranting a four-year prison sentence before mitigation.
He considered the late guilty plea, valuable in such cases, Diver’s lack of prior convictions, and his youth at the time of the offense as mitigating factors.
However, he highlighted the Probation Service’s assessment of moderate to high risk of reoffending due to Diver’s minimization and victim-blaming, stating, “you have absolutely no grounds to blame her for anything, as it is clear that you were the predator preying on her and that was clear to all watching what was going on.”
Judge Aylmer reduced the sentence to three years, stating he considered suspending a portion of it.
Due to the Probation Service report and Diver’s minimizing and victim-blaming, he decided against suspending any part of the three-year sentence.
Man who sexually assaulted young woman in Buncrana park jailed for 3 years was last modified: June 7th, 2025 by
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