AN OFFALY man who forced a young woman to have sex with him three times a week by threatening her with sanctions from the IRA has been jailed for nine years by Mr Justice Paul Carney.
Adrian Mooney's victim attempted suicide by drinking a cocktail of animal medicines.
Mooney (30), Glaskill, Screggan, Tullamore, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to 11 sample charges of rape in 2005 and 2006.
Mr Justice Carney directed that Mooney's name be added to the register of sexual offenders and that he undergo five years of post-release supervision.
He said he regarded it "as an enormously aggravating factor" that Mooney not only threatened his victim that she and her family would face action from the IRA unless she had sex with him three times weekly but that if she missed any one occasion in a week she had to make it up later.
The judge said the case merited a 12-year sentence but discounted three years for mitigating factors, including his early guilty plea, the testimony offered on his behalf by neighbours and the fact that the Director of Public Prosecutions only contended for a sentence "in the middle range".
Garda Ann McDonald told Remy Farrell, prosecuting, that Mooney rigorously enforced the "IRA rule" that the victim had to have sex with him three times a week or she and her family would be punished.
The victim had been crying a lot in her room and would not tell anyone why but then confided in a friend.
The victim's family confronted her and she admitted it all, telling them that she had come to "believe the IRA thing was all bullshit", although she said she had believed it at first.
Garda McDonald told Mr Farrell that after the victim attempted to harm herself, Mooney begged her not to tell anyone about their sexual activity. Some days later he admonished her "not to try a stunt like that again".
When the victim began going out with a boyfriend, Mooney told her he would have "to get IRA approval" for it. Later he told her he had "cleared it with the IRA" but it was on condition that she continued to have sex with him.
Garda McDonald said Mooney at first claimed the victim owed him €4,000 for drugs and the sex was to repay that. Mooney then agreed with gardaí that he "spun her along with the IRA story".
He had one previous conviction for theft of money from his employer.
Colm Smith SC, defending, said Mooney had become infatuated with the victim and had created "an incredible web of deceit".
Mr Smith said Mooney had spent all his own savings on presents and weekends for the victim as well as taking her on a holiday to Spain.