Man jailed for six-and-a-half years after raping girl, 12

Man jailed for six-and-a-half years after raping girl, 12

12 October 2022

A BALLYNAHINCH man has been jailed for six-and-a-half years for raping a vulnerable 12 year-old girl.

Paul Sheridan (25), of Hillfoot Crescent, was sentenced last Friday after earlier pleading guilty to two counts of raping a child under 13, two counts of sexually assaulting a child under 13 and two counts of child abduction.

A co-accused, Gerard McKenna (30), who is from the Whiterock area of west Belfast, but has been in Maghaberry Prison since the 

incident nearly three years ago, was handed a nine-year sentence.

Judge Patrick Lynch explained that the difference in sentencing was due to Sheridan’s guilty plea.

Following a two-week trial in May last year, McKenna was unanimously convicted by a jury of raping and sexually assaulting the 12 year-old victim, sexual activity with a second victim who was 15 at the time, offering to supply cocaine and two counts of child abduction.

Judge Lynch said that while McKenna denied the offences and still remained “highly confident” that he will be acquitted on appeal, Sheridan admitted his guilt and “did not subject the victim to any further humiliation”.

The victim said she was left feeling “scared and afraid”, adding that her innocence had been stolen from her.

Police welcomed the jail sentences which were imposed at Craigavon Crown Court.

Sergeant Phil Smyth said: “These very dangerous men preyed on two vulnerable young girls, coercing and manipulating them using alcohol and drugs.

“No person, let alone a child, should ever be exploited in this heinous way. Perpetrators of these crimes are incredibly manipulating, and often the young person they are targeting may not recognise they are being exploited.”

The horrific attack took place on the Lagan towpath on December 23, 2019.

The jury heard during McKenna’s trial that, despite being told that the youngest girl was only 12 years old, McKenna “held her hand and kissed her” before sexually assaulting her. Sheridan also kissed the girl and sexually assaulted her.

Both defendants appeared in court via videolink for sentencing on Friday.

Judge Lynch said he had read the victim impact statement in which the victim outlined how the incident “broke me” and McKenna “stole my innocence and virginity”, leaving her “scared and afraid”.

Quoting from her statement, the judge said: “He forced me to view the world as a dangerous place, filled with people who can hurt me like he did. What did I do to deserve this? No one has the right to do to me what he did. I was excited for Christmas, not knowing the nightmare that was to be my life.”

Judge Lynch said both men had multiple previous convictions and both had been assessed as posing a significant risk of causing serious harm.

He revealed that at the time of the rape Sheridan, who has 21 previous convictions, was on licence for a serious robbery in which he had tied up and robbed a vulnerable victim, while McKenna has 45 previous convictions, including for actual bodily harm, assault, harassment and breaching court orders, most of them committed against women in a domestic setting.

The judge said neither man showed any great insight into the damaging effects of their offending and were instead caught in a cycle of drink and drug abuse.

He said the offences had numerous aggravating factors, including the age and vulnerabilities of 

the girls, that the 12 year-old was raped by both men who knew her age yet “took advantage of that” and that the rape victim was given alcohol and its “consequent disinheriting effect”.

Judge Lynch said he was satisfied that both men were dangerous and ordered they be subject to an extra three years under supervised licence conditions upon release.

He also ordered that McKenna and Sheridan sign the police sex offenders’ register “for an indefinite period”.