Sex abuse victim tells court she felt she lived life "in a prison"

A woman who endured sexual abuse as a child has described feeling imprisoned by the trauma throughout her life. The victim gave evidence at the Central Criminal Court following the conviction of a 66-year-old man on five offences committed in county Donegal and Dublin between 1992 and 1994. The man was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault and two counts of rape after a jury trial. In her victim impact statement, the woman outlined how the abuse began when she was approximately ten years old and escalated to rape when she was twelve. She told the court of enduring panic attacks, anxiety, depression and flashbacks in adulthood, which have affected her relationships and employment. The woman also described becoming hypervigilant regarding her own children's safety. Ms Justice Margaret Heneghan adjourned the case to 19 May for sentencing. The defence presented character references and highlighted the defendant's lack of previous convictions and his wife's health dependence on him.