A 35-year-old man who pleaded guilty to two charges of incest and to 20 counts of sexually assaulting his sister over five years has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison.
The Central Criminal Court heard the abuse began when his sister was just ten years old and he was 17.
The court heard the charges were 'representative' and the victim says she was abused by her brother on a weekly basis from the time she was 10 until she was 15.
In sentencing, Mr Justice Paul Carney said he was taking into account the length of time the abuse went on for and the inherent gravity of the offences.
He said incest was an offence that society had hardened its attitude to.
The judge said he was also taking into account the man's plea of guilty and his expressions of remorse, as well as the report of a psychiatrist who said he was at a low-risk of reoffending.
Lawyers for the DPP told the judge yesterday, the director placed the offences at the 'mid-range' of the scale of such offences.
The court heard yesterday that the brother and sister were part of a very large family who lived in a remote rural location.
The abuse began when the man's sister was ten and would happen regularly, usually on a Sunday night when their parents would go out.
The court heard the man would tell the girl not to tell anyone as no one would believe her. The court was told the man began having sex with the girl two years later when she was 12.
The court heard the girl would be sore, upset and crying after the abuse. She eventually came forward when her brother had a baby daughter as she was afraid her niece would also be abused.
In her victim impact statement to the court, the girl said the abuse had had a terrible effect on her. She said she would be scared and frightened to be in bed at night because of what her brother might do to her. She said she felt she lost her childhood and she said she now hates her brother.
When she was 13 or 14 she told her parents what had been happening. She was asked to leave the room while they spoke to her brother but the abuse continued afterwards.
