Father-of-six raped teen daughter once a week

A man from Castlefin in County Donegal has pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to raping his teenage daughter repeatedly over an eight-month period between late 2010 and mid-2011. Maurice Lafferty, aged 50, committed the offences at his home while his wife was away working in Letterkenny. The court heard he assaulted his daughter once weekly, using threats and manipulation to silence her. During her victim impact statement, the complainant, now 25, described living in fear and the lasting trauma inflicted upon her. The defence counsel noted the accused's struggles with alcohol dependency and chronic health issues at the time. Mr Justice Alex Owens remanded Lafferty on continuing bail pending sentencing, scheduled for 29 April 2019.