Nephews deny making up sex claims

He pleaded not guilty to all charges and a jury of seven women and five men was sworn in to hear the case before Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin.

One of the complainants testified that he was sexually assaulted by his uncle first at the age of six and on the last occasion when he was about 14.

He said it first happened following his circumcision at the age of six, that his uncle asked him to pull down his pants so that he (the defendant) could see it.

The complainant said the defendant was in hospital for about two years following this and that the alleged sexual assaults resumed again afterwards.

The complainant said that as a child he was interested in music and that his uncle had a DJ machine for the Xbox .

He said his uncle showed him how to masturbate at the age of about 11 and that he (the defendant) would masturbate at the same time. The complainant said the defendant would get him to do this before being allowed to use the Xbox DJ equipment again.

Asked by Pearse Sreenan, prosecuting, how he viewed this activity, the complainant, who is now in his mid-20s, said: “I didn’t think anything. I thought it was normal. He said it was normal, just don’t tell anybody.”

Another nephew said that when he was aged around seven he was playing Play-Station in his uncle’s room when the defendant lunged at his crotch and felt his penis through his clothes.

He said the last alleged sexual assault took the form of the accused putting his penis in the complainant’s mouth for about 10 seconds.

Alice Fawsitt, defending, said in cross-examination of the complainants that the defendant denied the sexual assaults and claimed they were making them up because the accused refused their requests for money.

Ms Fawsitt said the defendant had mental health problems and had been diagnosed with psychosis and schizophrenia.

A memo of a Garda interview with the accused was put in evidence yesterday in which the accused said: “I am innocent of this, I swear to God.”

The case continues.