Content Warning: This article discusses allegations of sexual offenses and grooming.
Unnamed, Unknown, and Unclear: Another Celebrity Added to the A-List Roster of Alleged Sexual Offenders
By: Amelia McGlynn
A startling case in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court has placed a well-known Irish celebrity at the centre of serious allegations involving a minor, spanning months across 2010. The 40-year-old man, whose identity is protected by law, denied the charges of defilement and sexual acts with a child under 17, which allegedly occurred in Dublin between August and December 2010.
According to the defendant’s testimony and cross examination (carried out by Eilis Brennan SC) he claimed the complainant had signalled to him at their first meeting at Oxegen festival, where they had a conversation and exchanged phone numbers. When asked about his reason for getting her number, he explained that most of the festival’s attendees were over 18, and he found her to be “nice”.
Photo by: weiss_paarz_photos
Whilst never directly revealing her age at the time, the man has claimed that the festival was mostly an 18+ event, leading him to believe the 16-year-old was of a legal age. When questioned if it was fair to admit he was attracted to her at this stage, he said that the claim was “reasonable”.
The defendant denied any romantic involvement at the festival and stated that the complainant contacted him weeks later, although he couldn’t recall the exact timing.
He insisted that she informed him via text that she was 18, although he couldn’t recall or provide the specific messages of when this topic was discussed. He refuted the claim that she disclosed being 16 when they first met, reiterating that the festival was predominantly 18+.
The defendant also mentioned that their communication via text was sporadic and minimal between July 2010 and January 2011.
The defendant informed Ms. Brennan that he met the complainant for lunch a few weeks after the Oxegen festival. However, he couldn’t remember who arranged the meeting. According to him, during this encounter, the complainant mentioned she was 18 and in the midst of her Leaving Certificate exams. When asked if he considered the lunch to be a date, he replied that he “hadn’t considered it”.
He further stated that the complainant proposed the idea of meeting for lunch in late January 2011. It was during this meeting that he allegedly discovered she was 17 years old, a revelation that left him “shocked”.
Despite this discovery, they still met at his workplace, at hotels, and texted frequently. Across these visits, sexual “incidents” were alleged to occur, some of which the defendant has denied. Either way, the man has sullied himself into the business of at least romantic, if not sexual, entanglements with a minor.
There is no current release date for the man’s name, but many online are calling for the release of the accused’s identity. Twitter has been a hotspot for discussion of the case, with one user claiming “we NEED to know his name”. With his bail conditions changed to allow him to travel internationally, and no dates set for more information release, the country holds its breath waiting for further answers to these shocking questions.
