A jury in the case of a man accused of the systematic sexual abuse of his son over a period of three years was sent home for the weekend and will resume its deliberations on Monday.
The 52-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to 11 charges of anal rape, 12 charges of oral rape, and 24 charges of sexual assault on dates between April 11th, 2001, and June 23rd, 2004.
A charge of the wilful neglect or ill-treatment of the boy was withdrawn from the jury.
The offences are alleged to have occurred while the child was aged between 12 and 15 years old.
Mr Justice Barry White sent the jury of seven men and five women home on day eight of the trial after they had been deliberating for more than two hours, and asked them to return on Monday morning.