Courts / Monaghan / Report
Man used 'guise of being a gentleman' to sexually assault female friend
Summary
A man from County Monaghan has been sentenced to four years imprisonment following his conviction for sexual assault. James Rafferty, aged 21 and from Gola, Scotstown, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to sexually assaulting a female acquaintance on 14 August 2022. The assault occurred as the victim walked home after socialising. Justice Eileen Creedon described the offence as extremely serious and persistent, noting that Rafferty repeatedly assaulted the woman despite her resistance and explicit refusals. The court heard he initially denied the allegations to gardaí before later accepting the incident occurred. A Probation Service report indicated Rafferty has accepted the victim's account and acknowledged his behaviour was inappropriate. The final year of his sentence has been suspended on condition he engages with probation services for offence awareness work. Rafferty has no previous convictions.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Man used 'guise of being a gentleman' to sexually assault female friend. Charges or matters: one count of sexual assault on August 14, 2022 at a location in County Monaghan. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- August 14, 2022 Incident
- 2025-11-10 Publication
Why: "Everything, my education, finances, identity has vanished because he didn't respect the word 'no' no matter how many times I said it. CNI source report
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: one count of sexual assault on August 14, 2022 at a location in County Monaghan (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Justice Creedon set a headline sentence of seven years.
Places mentioned
- Central Criminal Court
- brought him to the garda station
Topics
Sexual Offences Stage Sentence Violent Crime
Related court reports
- Volunteer who said he was sacked for warning Church officials of 'rogue' relic traders can't pursue case, WRC rules
- Brave Paddy Power worker helped unmask repeat robber
- 'Monster' Derek Boyd gets life for murder, with sentence for killing sister referred back to circuit court
- Museum employee charged with possessing bomb tells court he wants to reapply for bail 'at earliest chance'
- Explosive device allegedly stored in National Museum at Collins' Barracks
- Ex-garda seeks allowance for services to Irish-language communities
Help us improve this report
Your request is saved for the newsroom's next review. It does not immediately change the published report.
Prefer email? Send a correction request.