Sentencing delayed in case of man found guilty of defilement

on 12/10/2012 11:55:22

A man has been remanded in custody ahead of his sentencing for having sex with a 13-year-old girl that he befriended on a social networking site.

The 24-year-old will be sentenced on December 7 after pleading guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two charges of defilement of a child at his home on April 29, 2011

Clinical psychologist Dr Patrick Randall told the court he's satisfied the 24-year-old does not have paedophiliac tendencies but his emotional immaturity means he's drawn to younger children.

The accused from Dublin used a false name and claimed to be 19 when he requested a friendship with the teenage girl on Bebo.

They swapped phone numbers and sent each other texts before arranging to meet outside his local supermarket last year.

He then brought the 13-year-old girl back to the home he shared with his parents and had sex with her twice in his bedroom.

Judge Mary Ellen Ring has put sentencing back for a probation report to see what sort of services will be available to help his rehabilitation post prison.

She said she was still very troubled that he'd targeted a web site which everyone knows was frequented by young people.