A former Ros Na Rún actor who raped a young woman who fell asleep in his van as he gave her a lift home has been sentenced to six years in prison.
Garrett Phillips, 46, of St Mary's Terrace, Taylor's Hill, Galway, was convicted after a four-day trial at the Central Criminal Court of one charge of orally raping the then 20-year-old woman on the outskirts of Galway city in the early hours of 5 November 2015.
He had pleaded not guilty to the offence and has no previous convictions.
The father-of-two initially worked in his family's business before becoming an actor and had been appearing on stage in London up to his trial.
The young woman told the jury that she had left a nightclub in the early hours of the morning of 5 November 2015 and was sitting on a bench when she first met Phillips, who was walking his dog.
He offered to give her a lift home in his van and then asked her if she wanted to see the city lights.
The court heard she fell asleep and when she woke up Phillips was standing over her and raping her.
The woman who had been outgoing, high achieving and happy told the court she was now a changed person who had isolated herself from friends and family and struggled to leave her home.
She felt she was being blamed for being young and vulnerable and the impression given was that it was her fault.
She was naïve, she said, but had not done anything wrong.
Philips starred as Frank Sinatra in a West End show while waiting for the case to begin and only told his wife about it the evening before the trial started.
The court heard today that he still did not accept complete responsibility for what he had done, continuing to insist it was consensual.
Ms Justice Eileen Creedon said Philips had committed "a callous rape" and described his actions as "predatory".
She sentenced him to six years in prison, with remission meaning he will serve four-and-a-half years.
