Pensioner jailed for abusing his children

Pensioner jailed for abusing his children

26 August 2015

A LECALE pensioner who waged a “vicious brutal reign of terror” against his children has been jailed for six years.

The man, who is in his 80s, has also been sentenced to two years of probation after his release for the horrific sexual and physical abuse of eight children over three decades. 

As his sentence was determined at Downpatrick Crown Court on Thursday, the defendant sighed deeply before protesting; “I can’t possibly accept that. I can’t accept that. This is terrible.”

He shook his head in disagreement as Judge Piers Grant QC said his young victims had been subject to a prolonged catalogue of sexual, physical and mental abuse the “full horror” of which had only emerged through victim statements, which showed they had suffered “substantial damage.”

The man cannot be named to protect the identity of his victims who were frightened into silence by their father saying he would die if they told their mother and would return to haunt them and “watch their every move.”

At a previous hearing in June, Judge Grant said the defendant had controlled his children’s lives, subjecting them to a “vicious and brutal reign of terror” in their home where they were entitled to feel safe and protected.

The crimes only came to light when the defendant made disturbing sexual advances towards his grown up daughter when she cared for him following the death of his wife.

The woman, who had considered herself a favourite of her father, told police he had suddenly propositioned her with a bottle of vodka in exchange for sex during a shopping trip in Downpatrick two years ago.

Despite her protestations, he continued to pester her and insisted this was normal behaviour between fathers and their children. She fled after he pulled her towards him and kissed her on the lips.

Following several days of limited contact, the woman said her father bought her flowers and pleaded with her to return to his home to tend to him. However, she said he became “tetchy” a few days later, which she feared was because she had turned him down.

When he began to speak again of his attraction to her, she finally disclosed his behaviour to her siblings, which prompted the others to tell their own stories of abuse.

The court heard this was a difficult time for the family, which was aggravated by their guilt at not 

supporting another sister who had previously made allegations about her father to be branded a “whore and alcoholic” by him.

This daughter was plied with vodka as a young teenager before being subject to acts of gross indecency and “gross and offensive language.”

“He punched and kicked, wherever his boot met you,” she said.

The court had previously heard that beatings, intimate touching and sexualised chat were commonplace in the family home, while some of the women were spied on by their father in the bath or intimately washed by him.

One woman, who suffers post-traumatic stress as a result of her difficult childhood, recalled being punched to the ground when she was about six, while another was punched with a closed fist for dancing, beaten unconscious and kicked between the legs so hard that she wet herself.

She also remembered him placing mirrors in the bathroom to spy on his daughters and using “filthy language.”

Another sister remembered being “kissed and groped” and hit off her feet into an open fire when she was six, while another recalled an open-mouthed kiss by her father.

His victims also recalled defendant touching their breasts and saying they were “developing nicely” during puberty.

They recalled the “total humiliation” of one brother through brutal beatings they found particularly upsetting because of his refusal to cry. 

Describing the impact of the abuse on the defendant’s family, Judge Grant said the full horror of the victims’ lives had emerged through victim impact reports, which showed substantial physical, emotional and mental damage.

“It is quite clear that you, as the father of these children, have a duty to each of them to protect them,” he said. “You betrayed their trust and the responsibility imposed upon you. You turned your attention on your daughters as a sexual outlet.”

The defendant was also ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register and was told he will also be subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order which will forbid him from working with children and vulnerable adults in the future.