Courts / Dublin / Report

Becoming a prostitute does not mean you could be "treated like trash", rape trial hears

Date
2015-12-01

Stage
Trial

Primary locality
Dublin City

County
Dublin

Summary

The Central Criminal Court trial of an unnamed accused, who has pleaded not guilty, is ongoing. He faces charges of oral rape and sexual assault of a woman in a Dublin hotel room on March 28, 2010, as well as two counts of threatening or putting in fear a witness between April 29 and May 28, 2010. Prosecuting counsel Sean Gillane SC argued the case centered on the accused's attempts to exercise control, rejecting the defense suggestion that the complainant's allegations stemmed from being underpaid. Gillane stated the texts sent to the complainant were a campaign of intimidation to drop charges. Defending counsel Thomas Creed SC contended the accused believed the encounter was consensual and that the complainant's testimony lacked corroboration of violence. Creed suggested the accused suspected the allegations were a scam to extort money, noting he did not know the complainant's real identity. The trial heard the accused used a pseudonym and unregistered mobile phone, only being identified when Detective Garda Ronan Conway linked an email address to a former employer via IP addresses. The jury is set to begin deliberations following the judge's directions.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Becoming a prostitute does not mean you could be "treated like trash", rape trial hears. Charges or matters: oral rape and sexual assault of the woman in a hotel room in Dublin city on March 28, 2010. Procedural stage: trial

When:

March 28, 2010 Incident
April 29 Incident
May 28, 2010 Incident
2015-12-01 Publication

Why: He said the proposition that the woman had made her allegations because she was "short changed" by the man was "a fantasy", stating: "She's never asked this man for a red cent". CNI source report