Woman sexually assaulted by housemate following party in Limerick
Accused initially denied the allegation claiming he ‘was never in her bedroom’ but his DNA was found on her underwear
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A BRAZILIAN man went into the bedroom of a sleeping housemate after a party and sexually assaulted her, Limerick Criminal Court heard.
The accused, who cannot be named due to reporting restrictions, pleaded guilty to sexual assault at a house in Limerick in April 2020.
Prosecuting barrister John O’Sullivan, instructed by State solicitor Padraigh Mawe, outlined the evidence with the assistance of Garda Denise McCarthy. The accused is aged in his 40s, the victim is in her 30s.
Mr O’Sullivan said there was a small party on the night as the victim was moving out.
The court heard the victim is an Asian woman who had been living in the residence with two married Brazilian couples - one of whom is the accused.
Mr O’Sullivan said the victim went to bed at 1am.
“Two others including the accused stayed up. Some time after 3am he entered her bedroom uninvited. She woke up to find him in her room and he proceeded to sexually assault her.
“He roughly grabbed her breasts and touched her breasts while masturbating himself. He tried to insert his penis in her vagina. She pushed him off.
“He put his fingers in her vagina and tried to masturbate her. She shouted ‘help’ but nobody heard her,” said Mr O’Sullivan.
The prosecuting barrister said on the following day the victim left the address and spoke to a friend before reporting the sexual assault to gardai.
He said the accused and the victim would not have known each other very well due to a language barrier. A Portuguese interpreter was in court. The victim didn’t attend.
Mr O’Sullivan said the accused came to Limerick to study English in 2019. After he was arrested in July 2020 he denied the allegation and told gardai he “was never in her bedroom”.
Mr O’Sullivan said the victim attended the sexual assault treatment unit following the incident.
The barrister said the accused man’s DNA was found on the victim's underwear and that there was “no innocent explanation” for this. There were also injuries to her neck and breasts.
Garda McCarthy said she approached the woman asking if she wished to provide a victim impact statement adding that she declined. “She has suffered a lot with her mental health and she couldn’t go through with it,” she told the court.
The defendant, she confirmed, has no previous convictions.
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Amy Nix BL asked the court to note her client’s guilty plea and in mitigation she spoke of the significant value of a plea in sexual assault cases as the victim does not have to be retraumatised in the witness box.
“This appears to be a once-off, albeit a very serious once-off. He came here to learn English and has worked hard for the last four years.
“He and his wife, who he lived in the house with, have gone their separate ways for separate reasons. He has remarried and his wife is waiting for him in Brazil to return once this is over. He is remorseful. I am instructed to say he is sorry,” said Ms Nix.
Judge Sinead McMullen indicated she will impose sentence later this month as she requires time to consider her verdict.