Abuser was on bail for defilement of a child when he sexually assaulted partner's best friend

A Donegal man has been sentenced to seven years imprisonment following his conviction for sexually assaulting a woman in his home in December 2020. The 32-year-old, from Lisminton, Ballintra, pleaded guilty to the offence at the Central Criminal Court last November. The assault occurred while the victim, who was in her 20s, slept on a sofa at his residence on Main Street, Ballintra. Evidence presented to the court included DNA analysis linking the accused to the incident. Justice Tony Hunt imposed the custodial sentence, having set a headline term of eight years before applying a reduction to account for the guilty plea. The judge noted the accused was on bail for a separate defilement charge at the time of this offence. Following release, the accused will be subject to three years supervision and must engage in offence-focused work including victim awareness programmes.