Limerick ex-scout leader who raped young cousin argues purported juror letter makes conviction unsafe

A FORMER scout leader who raped his young cousin and 10 years later sexually assaulted her two teenage sisters has argued that an anonymous letter claiming to be from a juror sent to his solicitor renders his convictions unsafe.

The 63-year-old Limerick man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of two of the sisters who wish to retain their anonymity, had pleaded not guilty but was convicted of five of the six offences following a trial at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Limerick in February 2024. He was acquitted of one charge of indecent assault.

The defendant was sentenced to seven and a half years by Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo in April 2024.

The man was convicted of two counts of indecent assault and one count of rape against one sister.

The offences occurred in her home between 1979 and 1981 when she was aged between six and eight years old and the accused was between 15 and a half and 18 years old.

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He was also convicted of one count of sexual assault against each of her two sisters. These offences occurred between May and September 1991 when the victims were teenagers, and the man was in his mid-twenties.

The women reported the abuse to gardaí in 2019. The man continues to deny the offences.

The man’s sentencing hearing was told that the indecent assault against the first sister involved him touching her vagina after carrying her upstairs and removing her underwear. He was babysitting her at the time.

In the second incident he asked her to touch his penis and then kiss it, presenting it as a game.

In relation to the rape incident, the woman believes she must have passed out as her next recollection was lying on the bathroom floor and her cousin splashing water on her face.

The court heard that ten years later the man, who was by then a Scout leader, convinced the sisters’ parents to allow the two other victims to accompany him on a charity fundraising trip with the Scouts.

During this trip, he arranged that the second victim sleep in a tent alone by herself. The teenager later woke up when she felt pressure on her face and body. She found her cousin lying on top of her. He then sexually assaulted her by touching her breasts.

On the same trip, the third victim went on a drive with her cousin in a van. He drove to an isolated spot and when they both got out of the vehicle, he walked towards her, grabbed her by the elbows and forcibly kissed her on the lips.

Launching an appeal against the man’s conviction this Friday, defence senior counsel Michael Bowman argued the trial judge erred in refusing to discharge the jury after one complainant said “he raped me” while giving evidence in relation to an indecent assault allegation said to have occurred when she was approximately six years old at the family home.

He said an application was made to discharge the jury, but this was rejected by the trial judge who said he could advise the jury that there was no rape charge in relation to this complainant.

Mr Bowman said the concern was that the jury would think “there is more to this than meets the eye” and that “there is something further at play” because sexual assault is alleged and the complainant mentioned rape.

Counsel also submitted that a letter received by the man’s solicitor purporting to be from one of the jurors in the case following the man’s conviction make the verdicts unsafe. He said the letter was anonymous so the party couldn’t be identified.

Mr Bowman said the letter, dated April 22, 2024, stated they felt under “pressure” to return a guilty verdict and that comments made by another juror made them believe that this person “knew family members”.

The content of the letter raises a question mark as to the soundness of the jury’s verdict, counsel said, which warranted some form of investigation by the court.

He said gardaí were immediately informed and something should have been done to identify where the letter came from. Mr Bowman said no attempt was made to retrieve fingerprints or to take DNA from the postage stamp.

He said there had been “a minimum engagement which has fallen short in this case”.

Mr Bowman also argued that the prosecution’s closing speech had “misled” the jury by suggesting that there was only a “binary” option available to it - believe the complainants or disbelieve them.

Mr Bowman said the tenor of the prosecution’s closing speech was to repeatedly reemphasise that to acquit the appellant would be to conclude that the complainants were liars.

Mr Bowman said this was a case concerning events alleged to have occurred decades ago and that it was not the defence case that the women were lying but rather that there was an alternative explanation, including the possibility of  “manufactured memory”.

He also submitted that the jury’s verdicts were not supported by the evidence and were therefore unsafe and should be overturned.

In response, Dean Kelly, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said that in relation to the indecent assault charge and the fact that one of the complainants had used the word “rape” whilst giving evidence, a verdict of not guilty had been returned. He submitted that this verdict renders the appellant’s complaints “entirely moot”.

In relation to the letter, Mr Kelly said gardaí found the postage stamp was “entirely generic” and provided no information as to its origins. He said the watermark showed it had passed through a sorting centre in Athlone which meant the letter could have been posted from any number of counties.

Counsel said no application was made at the time to delay the imposition of sentence.

Regarding the closing speech, Mr Kelly pointed to the fact that no requisition was raised about this by the defence at the time, despite having time to ponder it over the weekend.

He said the jury were told in exhaustive detail by counsel for the prosecution at the opening of the case about the various rules and principles which ought to be foremost in their minds at every stage of the trial.

Ms Justice Nuala Butler said the court would reserve judgment.