President of the Irish Athletic Boxing Association Gerard O’Mahony has been remanded in custody after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman over a decade ago.
O’Mahony (67) of Murphy Place, Abbeyside, Dungarvan, Co Waterford, had denied the single charge of sexually assaulting the young woman on a date unknown between January 1st, 2009, and December 31st, 2010.
On the sixth day of his trial at Waterford Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday, the jury of 10 men and two women took just under four hours to unanimously find O’Mahony guilty.
O’Mahony stepped aside from his position as President of the IABA in June, ahead of the trial.
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During the trial, the complainant said O’Mahony had sexually assaulted her when she was 19, after spiking her drink when she called to ask him for a lift. He had told her to call him if she was ever unable to get a taxi and was stuck for lift home.
The woman said she felt “a little bit rocky” after the drink. “I ended up lying on my back and he asked me did I want to have sex, I said ‘No’ …. I felt disassociated, it was an out of body experience,” she said.
“All I can remember is that he took off one boot. I don’t remember anything else because I passed out … when I came to, my leggings and my underwear were down around my ankles and his head was between my legs.”
She said O’Mahony told her “it was just a bit of fun” but she told him that “it was not fun” and he texted her the next morning asking, “Do you remember last night?” and she replied ‘No, can you tell me?”
When she met O’Mahony later that day, he showed her an intimate photo of her on his phone. She asked him to delete the image, but he refused and it was later foundby his wife and daughter.
O’Mahony later texted her and asked her if she was going to report the matter to the gardaí because if she was, he would catch a ferry to the UK. She told him she was not going to report it but she changed her mind when she read a message on Facebook in 2021.
O’Mahony was looking for support to run for the president of the IABA and in the post, he spoke about the need for “trust and respect”. When the young woman saw the post, she sent him a private message on Facebook, telling him he should “practice what you preach”.
She told how she got no response when she messaged O’Mahony saying: “You raped me, that’s what you did, you sexually assaulted me, and I looked on you as a father figure.”
After the jury returned its verdict, prosecution barrister, Conor O’Doherty BL applied for a remand in custody, saying that O’Mahony’s status had changed from innocent to guilty. This was opposed by defence barrister Tom Kelly BL, who said his client had serious health issues.
Judge Eugene O’Kelly said he was satisfied that the Irish Prison Service were able to cater for O’Mahony’s medical needs. He remanded him in custody as he adjourned the matter until December 3rd to allow for the preparation of a victim impact statement before sentencing.
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