Paedophile is jailed for six years after abusing young girls

Paedophile is jailed for six years after abusing young girls

13 May 2015

A JUDGE has jailed a paedophile pensioner from Ballynahinch for six years and praised the courage of his victims in coming forward.

Christopher O’Hare (70) was sentenced at Downpatrick Crown Court yesterday on 13 counts of indecent assault involving two girls aged between eight and 11.

The offences took place at his Drumsnade Road home over several decades.

O’Hare who faced 25 charges in total, was found not guilty on 11 counts, including four of rape. 

After around five hours of deliberation at Downpatrick Crown Court the jury failed to reach a decision on the remaining charge.

The guilty verdicts related to indecent assaults during a ‘scary bull’ game O’Hare played with one of the victims and indecent assaults inflicted on both girls in a number of rooms in the house.

The jury had been told that some of the counts were specimen counts to reflect alleged repeat offending over a period of time.

The not guilty verdicts related to the rape charges and included some of the allegations of assault that were alleged to have occurred outside the main home.

At yesterday’s sentencing Judge Piers Grant QC told an impassive O’Hare that he remained in effective denial of the offences.

He said aggravating features of the case included the fact that there were two victims and that the abuse took place over “two periods of considerable duration”. 

“The age difference was substantial,” he said.

“They were well brought up, obedient children and you were in a position to control them.”

Judge Grant said one of the victims had been “seriously damaged” by the abuse. He said she had attempted to blank out what had happened to her and he spoke of her courage in coming forward when hearing there was a second victim.

Of the second victim, Judge Grant said it was clear the abuse had had a “devastating effect on her life and health”.

“I consider that she displayed remarkable courage in giving the evidence she did and going through the turmoil that she did,” he said.

Judge Grant said he hoped the jury believing she had been abused would give her some comfort and a “greater ability to put these matters behind her”.

“It is clear she has been very severely damaged and will find that difficult in the future,” he said.

Before passing sentence Judge Grant said that the law at the time the offences were committed allowed only for a two year maximum sentence on indecent assault compared to the 10 year maximum currently in place.

He said the offences were also committed during the period when 50 per cent remission still applied to sex offenders, meaning by law O’Hare will be released after three years.

However, he said the scale of the offending and the impact on the victims meant he would be posing a number of the sentences consecutively instead of concurrently. In total this amounted to a six year sentence.

He told O’Hare that his clear record, ill health and low risk of reoffending would not spare him jail.

“I consider the harm you caused to both complainants very significant in the case,” he said.

“You have no insight into the harm you have caused.”

O’Hare is also subject to a Sexual Offences Prevention Order banning him from working with children.