Father found guilty of all 83 sex crimes against daughter (Part 1 of 2

A father in the Republic has been convicted of 83 charges of raping and indecently assaulting his daughter.

The 49-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been convicted on Wednesday of a total of 21 charges of rape, buggery and indecent assault.

Yesterday, the jury of seven men and five women at the Central Criminal Court, sitting in Castlebar, Co Mayo, found him guilty on all 62 remaining counts of rape.

He had denied all charges, which dated from 1986 to 2000.

In shocking evidence to the court, the victim, who is now aged 30, said that her father had first raped her when she was just five or six years of age.

He had put her over an object in a press and raped her from behind.

She said in her evidence: "He told me, 'It's only going to hurt for a while. It's a game we're playing -- we can't tell your mother about it.'

"He kept raping me after I had my (first) daughter. He'd perform sex on you every way, you know."

When she was queried about how often her father would have sex with her, she replied: "Every chance he got."

Forensic scientist Michael Burrington gave evidence that, from studying DNA profiles, he concluded that there was an almost 100pc probability of her father being the father of her two daughters, rather than any other man.

The accused man chose not to give any evidence during the seven-day trial, but the jury heard that he denied all of his daughter's allegations when questioned by gardai.

In memos of garda interviews read to the court, it was put to him that his daughter had described him as a violent man.

He insisted that his daughter was free to come and go as she wished. "I have no violent voice. I love my children. She will come to her senses," he told gardai.

On Wednesday the jury found him guilty of five charges of rape, eight of buggery and eight of indecent assault.

When they returned to court yesterday morning to resume their deliberations, Mr Justice Barry White told them that he would accept a majority verdict in respect of any of the remaining counts on the indictment.

After deliberating for almost three-and-a-half hours, the jury returned with guilty verdicts on all counts.

The judge told them that it was not an easy task to sit in judgment of one's fellow man. In a case such as this, it was perhaps even more difficult.

Prosecution said it would require some time to prepare a victim impact statement.

Sentencing was adjourned to the Central Criminal Court in Dublin on December 13.

The judge remanded the convicted man in custody to that date and ordered that his name be entered on the Sex Offenders Register.