'Little people grow up to be bigger and stronger': jail for man who abused boy in 1980s

A man has been jailed for one year at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court following his guilty plea to indecently assaulting a child in Dublin in the 1980s. Thomas Deegan, aged 55 and with an address in Finglas, Dublin, committed the offence against an eight-year-old boy between May 1982 and October 1985. The victim, now 45, made a formal complaint to gardaí in 2015, leading to Deegan's arrest and charging in 2017. Deegan initially failed to appear for trial in November 2019 and was subsequently located in Donegal. He entered his guilty plea on the first day of trial this month. In sentencing, Judge Elma Sheahan noted the seriousness of the offence and the age disparity, but acknowledged Deegan's lack of previous convictions and clean record since the incident. She suspended the final twelve months of the sentence on strict conditions. The victim provided an impact statement describing lasting effects including low self-esteem and anxiety.