A 14-year-old boy who attempted to upload a video on to YouTube of him sexually assaulting his eight-year-old cousin two years ago has been handed 16 months of detention.
The now 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to three charges including sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity with a child and production of child pornography at the children’s grandparents’ home in Sligo on St Stephen’s Day 2021.
Imposing sentence on Wednesday, Ms Justice Melanie Greally said the aggravating features of this case include the victim’s age, the age difference, the impact of the offending and the breach of trust, not only of the girl but of her family.
She said she would set a headline sentence of 12 years if the accused was an adult, but reduced this to four years due to the boy’s age.
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She said she took into account the mitigation including the guilty plea, expressions of remorse, his adverse life experiences and his “strong emotional bond” with his mother, who herself has difficulties.
The judge said she considered that the severity of the offending and the aggravating factors meant that a period of detention could not be avoided.
She imposed the term of detention followed by 16 months of supervision by the Probation Service.
A local detective told Garret Baker SC, prosecuting, that it was the teenager attempting to upload the video he recorded on to YouTube that led to the offence coming to light. He confirmed that the online video sharing and social media platform intervened and the video was never uploaded. YouTube then alerted the authorities and provided all associated email addresses with the account.
The detective said this led to the accused being identified.
The girl was interviewed by specialist gardaí in March 2022 and she confirmed that her cousin “put his private in my mouth and made me kiss him”.
The detective agreed with Michael Bowman SC, defending, that his client made admissions and signed those admissions. He accepted that he had tried to put the video on to his private YouTube account and confirmed that he had used his own phone. He handed over that phone to gardaí.
Mr Bowman said a probation report noted that the boy had been exposed to pornography from the age of 12 and has “unrealistic expectations surrounding sex”.
The judge noted that the reports handed to the court indicate the teenager is in “immediate need” of therapeutic supports.
In the circumstances, she would defer the start of the period of detention and directed him to present himself at the Criminal Courts of Justice on January 11th, when the order will take effect.
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