An Offaly farmer denied to a Central Criminal Court jury that he raped his niece by marriage at his home when she was a child. "I'm not guilty. I never touched the girl. I would never do that to a girl," he said in evidence on the fourth day of the trial.
He said he "totally denied" her allegation that he raped her or that he said it was as a punishment, as she had claimed in evidence. The 47-year-old denies two charges of raping the girl and one charge indecently assaulting her on dates from 1987 to 1988. Four other indecent assault charges were withdrawn from the jury by Mr Justice Carney following an application by defence council Mr Barry White SC (with Ms Aileen Donnelly).
He denied the alleged victim's claim that he invited her out to a shed to see new-born lambs the first time he indecently assaulted her. He added that his daughter would have been too small to be washing dishes in the kitchen at the time, as was also claimed by the alleged victim. He said the shed in question was only in use in May 1986, which was after the lambing season.
Cross-examined by prosecuting counsel Mr Gerard Clarke SC (with Mr Dara Foynes) he said he first heard about the allegation in 1996. The alleged victim's father told his wife he had abused the girl, but failed to come to their house to speak to him about it.
He said he twice tried to phone the girl's father but he put the phone down on him. He only heard the details when he was arrested and interviewed. He was shocked at the allegation and he and his family were still wondering why the girl made her claims.
The defendant agreed with Mr Clarke that the alleged victim had been a frequent visitor to his house and his daughter often spent time in her home. He never wondered why the girl stopped staying over in his house and did not ask her.
The defendant's wife told Ms Donnelly that the girl's father told her on March 29th, 1996 that her husband had sexually abused his daughter. She replied: "No f...ing way" and asked him was it proved. He said it had been and it had happened "three or four years ago".
She arranged for him to visit her husband that night and discuss the allegations with him, but he failed to turn up. The defendant's daughter told the jury she had never been sexually assaulted by her father as had been claimed by the alleged victim. She never saw the alleged victim alone with her father.
The trial continues on Monday before Mr Justice Carney and a jury.