Victims recall horror of childhood abuse

Victims recall horror of childhood abuse

22 October 2014

A FORMER Rubane House resident has suggested he was drugged and driven off the premises to be abused in a “big house”.

In what has been one of the most startling claims to the Historical Abuse Inquiry to date, the man claims he was “given cocoa” before being taken away and photographed naked.

Counsel to the inquiry, Joseph Aiken, said: “He seems to describe some form of being drugged. He recalls photos of himself being taken.” 

He added: “[the resident] describes being subject to medical examinations. His body would have been inspected.”

The man, who did not give evidence in person to inquiry this week, had a statement read to Banbridge Courthouse by Mr. Aiken.

“I could feel pain but I was helpless like a rag doll,” it read. “I also remember [one of the Brothers] giving me cocoa and taking me out at night in the car and bringing me to a big house. I also remember them photographing me naked. I recall bright flashes of light as the photos were taken.”

He also claimed to have been raped repeatedly in various locations inside and outside of Rubane House, such as the pavilion, sports fields, laundry, garage and workshop.

Turning to physical abuse he said one of the teachers would “bang the cane off the desk” to split the ends and make beatings worse, and that one teacher was known for “throwing lumps of wood or a set square at you”. “It was just the way he was,” he said.

The inquiry heard he had made allegations against a total of seven Brothers. The inquiry also heard there were a number of files missing in relation to his case.

In his statement the man claimed to have told a social worker, but after that “no-one came to see me”. He said he also told a priest in confession what was going on.

“He must have told them,” he said of the priest. “I got a terrible bad beating and was in bed for a week.”

He added that he was brought to the hospital because his neck seized up. “And that’s the only reason why they brought me to hospital,” he said.

After telling another Brother of what was going on he recounted: “He did nothing to stop it but after I reported it to him he always smiled at me and gave me sweets.”

Mr. Aiken said the man had given accounts of “extreme graphic detail” to police about his time in Rubane in the mid 1960s and appeared to be “visibly distressed” at times during interviews.

The inquiry was told that in the 1990s it was decided a prosecution against one of the Brothers was not in the public interest due to the length of time passed and the Brother being nearly 90.

A legal ‘abuse of process’ application by the defence for two other Brothers also led to their cases being abandoned in court.

The inquiry was told that one Brother interviewed in response to the allegations said he had a “very good rapport” with the boys and was never aware of any abuse.

“I never in any way interfered with any boy,” he said.

Another responded in a sworn testament: “I totally repudiate these allegations”.

It was also pointed out by one Brother that allegations against him in recent years were not part of the man’s original testimony to police.

It was also pointed out that the allegations of being driven off the premises did not emerge in earlier statements.

The inquiry heard that the man was previously awarded £35,000 in a civil pay-out by the church.

Chair of the inquiry, Sir Anthony Hart, said this case was an example of one of the “complex” ones with which the inquiry had to grapple.