A member of the Irish Defence Forces who “spurned the consensual offer that was made to him in a selfish, arrogant and forceful way” has been jailed for 8½ years for the rape of a fellow soldier at a Dublin hotel three years ago.
Kielan Mooney (30) of Bloomfield Park, Derry, was convicted following a trial at the Central Criminal Court last December on a count of anal rape, oral rape and rape of the woman at the Dublin hotel on July 26th, 2021.
He had pleaded not guilty to a total of six charges – two charges of rape, two charges of oral rape, a charge of anal rape and a charge of sexual assault. The jury failed to reach a verdict on the three remaining charges.
The now 24-year-old woman, who is also a serving soldier of the Irish Defence Forces, has indicated that while she is content for Mooney to be named in the reporting of the case, she does not wish to be identified.
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Sentencing Mooney on Monday, Mr Justice Tony Hunt said Mooney “spurned the consensual offer that was made to him in a selfish, arrogant and forceful way and had no respect for the limits she [the woman] wanted to place on sexual activity”.
“He simply took what he wanted from the encounter and had no respect for her wishes,” the judge said.
It was her “prerogative and privilege” to decide when to have sexual activity, who with and the level of that activity, said Mr Justice Hunt.
The trial heard the woman was out socialising with other army members when they met a group of soldiers from Mooney’s barracks in Donegal.
She and Mooney got speaking and they decided to go back to the woman’s friend’s hotel room in the city centre.
The woman told the trial that Mooney anally raped her in her friend’s hotel room. She said she had asked him to stop but he did not.
Afterwards she went to the bathroom and was crying. She managed to text her friend. Mooney came into the room and asked her what was wrong before he took her by the hand and brought her back into the bedroom.
Mooney then forced the woman to perform oral sex on him before he pushed her on to the bed and raped her.
The woman managed to get back into the bathroom and phoned her friend who told her that she and two other male friends were nearly at the hotel. After they arrived, the two men forced Mooney out of the room and the gardaí were called, the court heard.
At a previous sentence hearing last December, a number of affidavits were presented to the court that described Mooney, a father of five, as “very family orientated”, “a dedicated father”, “someone who works exceptionally hard to make sure his children know they are loved” and also as a man who “idolises his children”.
On Monday, Gráinne O’Neill BL, prosecuting, told Mr Justice Hunt that following newspapers reports of that hearing, two women contacted the Director of Public Prosecutions to rebut that evidence.
The women, who each have two children with Mooney, said that Mooney had not seen his children, that he does not pay maintenance and that it is “always hard work” with him as he never really wants to see them.
One of the women said Mooney always put his social life and lifestyle ahead of her children with him. She said “he is not a good person, not a good role model” and she would never let Mooney near her children.
Mr Justice Hunt said it was clear from these statements from these two women that Mooney has had “no meaningful or positive contact with these children over a long period of time”.
He described those earlier testimonials in relation to Mooney being a good father as “a false prospectus” and a “gross overstatement”.
Mr Justice Hunt also noted that Mooney applied for bail on conviction by the jury, and while bail was refused and Mooney was remanded in custody pending sentence, one of the reason he was looking for bail was to give him the opportunity to say goodbye to his children.
“I believe I have been significantly misled as to the material that was put forward and also the basis of a bail application pending conviction at trial. I don’t take it lightly, someone trying to pull the wool over my eyes,” Mr Justice Hunt said.
In sentencing Mooney, Mr Justice Hunt said there was “no recognition of the verdict of the jury” and Mooney does not appear to show any remorse for the significant harm he caused.
Mr Justice Hunt set a headline sentence of 9½ years which he applied as “a global sentence” for the offences Mooney had been convicted of by the jury.
Mr Justice Hunt said it was “apparent” from the woman’s demeanour both during the trial and in giving her victim impact statement that the rapes had impacted her life and career.
“I wish her well and hope she is able to put this behind her and get on with her life in a positive way. I have no doubt that she is strong enough to do that,” Mr Justice Hunt said.
Mr Justice Hunt said he had intended to reduce the headline sentence by two years but he would not do that now given the evidence he received on Monday in relation to Mooney’s “mitigating factor that was falsely put forward”.
“No court should be put in a position of being faced with a false prospectus,” the judge said before he added that this was “warning to anyone who is considering overselling themselves in terms of mitigation”.
He imposed a jail term of 8½ years. He also imposed a two-year post-release supervision order and said that Mooney must engage with the Probation Service for two years upon his ultimate release from prison. The jail term was backdated to when Mooney first went into custody last December.
At a previous hearing, the woman read her victim impact statement into the record.
She said she never expected a man to take away something from her in such a selfish way and described how she struggled with her mental health in the aftermath of the rape.
“I never believed that something over one night could shatter everything I thought and believed in – myself and my future. The hurt does not just disappear,” the woman said.
She said the support she has received from many people have “helped remind me that I am worth more than someone else’s despicable actions”.
She specifically thanked the gardaí and the various supports services in the army. She said her appreciation for those that helped her in the army “needs to be recorded”.
The woman also thanked the Rape Crisis Centre, “who reassured me of my safety”, and expressed her thanks to her family and friends.
The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s freephone 24-hour national helpline can be reached at 1800 77 8888
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