A 73-year-old man has been remanded in custody charged with 89 counts of rape and sexual assault against three of his children.
After 13 hours of deliberations the jury this morning returned guilty verdicts against the man on five counts of rape, three of sexual assault and one of oral rape. No verdict was reached on seven other charges.
The defendant had pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting and raping two of his daughters, while they were between the ages of five and 11, and to sexually assaulting his son, while he was aged between three and six, at various locations.
The incidents of abuse occurred between 1997 and 2002.
The jury yesterday convicted the defendant of 80 sexual offences against the three victims.
The man originally faced 113 charges, but Mr Justice George Birmingham ordered not guilty verdicts on 17 of the counts following legal argument.
Mr Justice Birmingham thanked the jury for their outstanding commitment during the seven-week trial, describing their efforts as citizenship at its best, and he excused them from jury service for the rest of their lives.
The man, who was this morning certified as a sex offender by Mr Justice Bermingham, will be sentenced on October 4th.
