A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of raping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl in a car at Limerick Racecourse when he was just 13 years old.
The verdict was delivered on Monday at the Central Criminal Court in Cork, where the jury returned a 10-to-1 majority decision convicting the boy on both charges. For legal reasons, he cannot be named due to his age.
The incident occurred on December 26, 2022, when the girl, then 16, attended the racecourse in Patrickswell with friends. During the trial, she told the court she met the group of boys for the first time that day and later got into a car with them.
Inside the vehicle, she said the 13-year-old pulled down his trousers and raped her without consent, despite her repeatedly saying “no” and telling him she was on her period.
She testified that after the first assault, a second boy got into the back seat and “did the same thing.” She said she was under the influence of alcohol at the time and was not thinking clearly.
The defence argued the boy believed the encounter was consensual. Tom Creed SC, representing the now 15-year-old, highlighted that the complainant had agreed to go somewhere private to kiss one of the boys. She acknowledged this but said it did not mean she had consented to sex.
Vincent Heneghan SC, defending a second accused youth—15 at the time and now 17—said his client admitted to having sex with the girl but insisted it was consensual.
He claimed the girl initiated the encounter and removed her underwear, which the complainant firmly denied, stating she disagreed with the “whole story.”
The jury also heard a Garda recording of a specialist interview with the complainant shortly after the incident. In the interview, she said she was “freaked” by what had happened and had immediately told her friends after leaving the car. Her parents later brought her to a Sexual Assault Treatment Unit.
During closing arguments, Dean Kelly SC, prosecuting, told the jury the boys were laughing and encouraging each other while assaulting the girl. He said they wanted the jury to believe the complainant was “a nasty, evil, mendacious liar.” Still, he argued that the evidence showed they “took what they wanted from her, physically and sexually, whether she wanted to or not.”
Deliberations are ongoing regarding two other teenage boys charged with the same incident. One is facing charges of rape and sexual assault, while the other is accused of aiding and abetting and of falsely imprisoning the complainant. Both were 15 at the time.
Tom McInerney SC, representing the third accused, told the court he was not suggesting the girl was lying but proposed that her feelings may have changed after rejoining her friends, suggesting “some element of regret” may have emerged.
The jury will continue deliberations on the outstanding charges on Tuesday.
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