Courts / Limerick / Report

17 years for serial abuser who raped, manipulated and isolated girl (13)

Date
2018-11-19

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Limerick

Summary

Patrick O'Dea, aged 52, was sentenced to 18½ years in prison for raping and repeatedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl, Leona O'Callaghan, who was aged 12 to 14 at the time of the offences. O'Dea pleaded guilty to charges of sexual assault and rape committed in 1994 and 1995. He had 42 prior convictions, including a sexual assault of a girl under ten, and had previously received a 15‑year sentence for multiple rapes and assaults of a single girl between 1998 and 2004. The judge suspended the last 18 months of the sentence, recognising his guilty plea and willingness to undertake a psychological assessment, and imposed a three‑year post‑release supervision order. O'Dea was required to participate in the "Building Better Lives" sex‑offender treatment programme. The court noted the severe psychological damage inflicted on Ms O'Callaghan, who had made three suicide attempts, and highlighted O'Dea's pattern of offences against young girls.