'Your mammy won't believe you,' man with Tipperary address jailed for raping his niece

Two Laois brothers have been jailed for sexual abuse of their niece during her childhood.

James Joseph Jordan (59) and Patrick Fintan Jordan (55) began abusing their niece, Sabrina Fox, when she was just nine-years-old. She has waived her anonymity so they can be named.

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Ms Fox told the Central Criminal Court the brothers had destroyed her childhood and had shown no remorse for what they had done and continue to do.

She said her uncles had intimidated her at every opportunity and told her she would not be believed.

Ms Fox said coming forward had come at a heavy price and affected every aspect of her life but she hoped that now the truth was out some healing could begin.

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James Joseph Jordan (59), of St Kierans, School Road, Erill, county Laois, pleaded guilty to rape and indecent assault on dates between 1986 and 1991. He was aged between 21 and 25-years-old at the time.

Patrick Fintan Jordan (55), of Clohessy Place, Bouladuff, Thurles, county Tipperary also pleaded guilty to rape and indecent assault, on dates between 1986 and 1991. He was aged between 16 and 21 at the time.

The offences occurred at Ms Fox’s family home in Borris-in-Ossory, county Laois and started when she was aged between eight and nine-years-old. The sexual abuse by the two men continued until Ms Fox was 13-years-old.

The abuse began with her being raped by both men on the same night as they were minding her.

She recalled the sexual abuse being “constant” over the following years with the men taking any opportunity to get her alone.

She spoke to her mother about the abuse after it ended and was told to try and forget it. The men continued to attend family events.

She outlined how her health and life had been and continues to be affected by the abuse. She told the court she would never forgive them for what they had taken from her.

Passing sentence on Thursday, Mr Justice David Keane said this was a “sequence of frequent and persistent rape offences” over a period of five years by the men, who were in a position of trust as the victim's uncles and babysitters.

He said it was also aggravating that Ms Fox was “particularly vulnerable” due to her age at the time and noted the long lasting effects of the offending on her.

Mr Justice Keane imposed a sentence of nine and half years on both men, to reflect their global offending. He suspended the final year on strict conditions and imposed a three-year post-release supervision order.

The judge said the victim impact statement was a “powerful” document which outlined the significant effect on Ms Fox. He said it was “distressing” to hear about “her misplaced feelings of guilt and shame”, noting that the guilt and shame “lies squarely” with the two defendants.

He said the injured party had demonstrated “admirable qualities” of courage and tenacity by coming forward. He wished her well in her continued recovery.

The judge noted the men's respective ages at the time of their offending and said the court had taken this into account. He said he had also considered the mitigation including their guilty pleas, the contents of probation and psychological reports and their respective medical issues.

Mr Justice Keane noted that both men were at high risk of suicidal ideation and asked defence counsel to communicate this to the Irish Prison Service.

Cathleen Noctor SC, prosecuting, told the court during an earlier sentence hearing that the view of the Director of Public Prosecutions was that the case falls into the “more serious” range of cases with a sentence of 10 to 15 years.

She said in the case of the older man he had been in a position of trust while babysitting her, he had also threatened her and told her not to tell anyone what was happening.

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She said in the case of the younger brother he had been a minor during some of the offending, but also had previous conviction for violence, albeit not sexual violence.

Michael Bowman SC, defending James Joseph Jordan, said his client has significant alcohol difficulties and had no accurate recollection of what took place. He does not dispute what the injured party has said. He handed in a letter of apology.

He said he has lived all his life in the same community and has no relevant previous convictions.

Counsel said the brothers had been raised in circumstances of deprivation without a stable income and their mother had alcohol difficulties.

He left school early and began working but as he earned money he developed issues with alcohol. He said his general health is not good.

Mr Bowman said the psychological report detailed his client was in need of therapeutic intervention and he was open to undertaking rehabilitative work in custody.

He asked the court to take into account the guilty pleas, the fact no other allegations have emerged, that this offending was of some antiquity and within a relatively confined period. He acknowledged the injured party lives with the consequences of the offending all the time.

Barry White SC, defending Patrick Fintan Jordan, said because of the man’s alcohol abuse his memory is impaired but he accepts the offending occurred.

He referred to the psychological report and outlined that the man was “quite damaged” and will require a lot of psychological assistance in the future. He said this was not readily available within the prison system.

He asked the court for such clemency as deemed appropriate in all the circumstances of the case.

An investigating garda told Ms Noctor that the victim made a complaint to gardai in 2022 of sexual misconduct by her two uncles and a statement was taken.

The court heard that the offending began when Ms Fox was eight, almost nine, years old. The accused men used to look after the girl and her siblings on occasion.

She recounted how she had fallen asleep on her parent’s bed and was woken by James Joseph Jordan pulling her underwear down and raping her. His brother, Patrick Fintan, asked what he was doing and James Joseph said he would show him. He then made Patrick Fintan have sex with her.

The accused men later told the girl’s mother, their sister, that the victim had wet the bed. Ms Fox said she had not but was not believed.

The women recounted further incidents of her uncle’s raping and sexually assaulting her. She also told of the threats the men made to her so she would not disclose what was happening.

She said one of the men told her: “Your mammy won't believe you, she will believe me.” She said she was never fully asleep and was constantly waiting for what would happen next.

She said one of the accused men told her: “You better not have told your mother, I am the boss.”

The men also indecently assaulted the victim on a regular basis. The court also heard graphic details of ongoing rapes of the young girl at the hands of the men at her home and locations nearby.

She said at some point there was a confrontation between her father and the men. She believed in her mind that her mother was annoyed with her. She said she was safe for about six months but the men returned when her father went away from the house to work.

She recounted how on one occasion James Joseph Jordan told her “If you let me do it to you, I won’t do it to your younger sister.”

The woman recounted how the abuse became constant, occurring up to five days a week with the men taking any opportunity to get her alone. The offending continued up to 1991.

She spoke to her mother about it after 1991 and her mother told her to try and forget about it. The men continued to be part of family occasions the victim had to attend.

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The younger man was arrested and interviewed in 2024. He said he had been drinking a lot in his early life and accepted the woman was telling the truth.

The older man was also interviewed and said he did not recall the events but accepted it happened the way the injured party said.