A life sentence was handed down to a man who routinely attacked and sexually molested his wife, putting her through “25 years of hell” in which he would break into their home in the middle of the night and rape her, reports RTE.
Judge Melanie Greally, who handed down the life sentence, stated that the victim endured a “litany of physical and sexual abuse” during her marriage.
She said the victim impact statement conveyed the “unending nightmare” the woman had endured and the “vast damage” caused to her by her husband.
The judge said the court recognised the immensity of the woman’s suffering and the vast damage that her husband “willfully and sadistically” caused to her, reports RTE.
The 67-year-old, from Co Carlow, had pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to 12 sample counts including nine of rape, two of sexual assault and one of assault causing harm.
All of the offending took place at the family home on dates between 1991 and 2015.
He cannot be identified in order to preserve the victim’s privacy, reports RTE.
Earlier this year, the Director of Public Prosecutions accepted the guilty pleas to 12 counts, including rape, sexual assault, and assault causing harm. The remaining charges will be considered after the trial of the 52 counts he was supposed to stand trial on.
Ms. Justice Greally declared that the rapes were “of the most egregious kind” and mentioned a number of aggravating circumstances, such as the seriousness of the offense, how long it lasted, and the “immense breach of trust.”
The judge further pointed out that the offense was repeated and that “excitement and sexual pleasure” were the motivations behind it, reports RTE.
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