‘A terrifying ordeal’: Man jailed for violently sexually assaulting former sister-in-law

A man has been jailed for nine years for violently sexually assaulting his former sister-in-law during a prolonged and “terrifying ordeal” in her bed.

The 41-year-old man, who cannot be named to protect the anonymity of his victim, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of aggravated sexual assault of the woman at her Dublin home on July 16th, 2021. The charge that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The court heard that the man entered the woman’s bedroom at around 2am and subjected her to a prolonged and violent sexual assault over a period of five hours.

Sentencing the man on Friday, Ms Justice Melanie Greally noted that during the “terrifying ordeal” the man repeatedly sexually assaulted the woman to the point that she sustained internal injuries.

He was armed with a metal object, described as a turkey baster, and threatened to stab the woman 50 times if she did not comply with his demands, the court heard.

He physically assaulted the woman by “choking, pulling, pushing, grabbing and turning (her) with force”, Ms Justice Melanie Greally said. “At times she struggled to breathe,” she added.

The woman made every effort to resist the man, which further enraged him, the court heard. He took the woman’s phone when she tried to call for help. She eventually managed to escape her home at 7.30am and was discovered by a neighbour.

She was taken to a sexual assault treatment unit where she was found to have bruising and abrasions consistent with a sexual and physical assault.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said she is a shadow of the person she used to be and that she has withdrawn from all forms of physical activity. She said she suffers from panic attacks and is in a “perpetual state of fear and anxiety”.

Ms Justice Greally noted that the woman is “a long way from putting this offence behind her”.

The court heard the man is originally from the Dominican Republic and has no previous convictions. The court heard he was working for a technology company at the time of the offence and has two children, including one child with his victim’s sister.

The court heard the man’s guilty plea was accepted by the prosecution on a full facts basis. He has been in custody since July of last year and has stated that he intends to return to the Dominican Republic upon his release.

Ms Justice Greally noted the aggravating factors in the case included the “prolonged nature of the offence”, the “multiplicity of sexual violations”, the “persistent and extreme level of abuse”, the threats to kill and the restriction of the woman’s liberty.

She set a headline sentence of 14 years, before taking mitigating factors into account including the man’s lack of previous criminal offending and his guilty plea.

She handed down a sentence of 10½ years and suspended the final 18 months on a number of conditions, including that the man leave the jurisdiction within seven days of his release from custody, and that he not return to Ireland for a period of 30 years.