‘It messed up my teenage years’

A MAN who was high on ecstasy when he pulled down the trousers of a 14-year-old boy and carried out a sex act on him has been jailed for a total of five years.

Monaghan Circuit Court heard how the shocking incident occurred as the boy was walking along the Ulster Canal in Monaghan on November 30, 2018.

The court heard how the man, who was 20 at the time and cannot be named to protect the victim, also urged the boy to carry out oral sex on him.

The incident ended when the boy shouted at some friends and the man fled the scene.

When the man was arrested later that night, after the boy had been brought to the gardaí by his family, he told officers: “F**k me , I didn’t do that. I’m not gay.”

Defence barrister Breffni Gordon, BL, outlined to the court how the man was extremely intoxicated on the night of the incident, and had also taken ecstasy.

He said the defendant could not deny what had happened, as he simply had no memory of what had occurred, but that he “couldn’t believe the shit” that was being put to him.

The court also heard that a hat that belonged to the man had been recovered at the scene.

In a victim impact statement, the victim, who is now 20 years old, said the sexual assault turned his life upside down.

He said he has suffered from suicidal thoughts as a result of it.

“I just keep thinking about that day,” the victim said, adding that he has been trying to get back into playing sports to take his mind off it.

He added that he struggled in school following the attack, and that he has difficulty forming relationships with girls as it’s always in the back of his mind.

“It messed up my teenage years,” the victim added.

Judge John Aylmer said the sexual assault on the boy was at the upper end of the mid tier of offending.

He imposed a sentence of seven years in prison, suspending the final two years, on condition that the man abstains from alcohol and drugs and avails of counselling and rehabilitation services while in custody.