A grandfather who sexually abused three of his young granddaughters in Tipperary has been jailed for 11 years.
The 77 year old, who cannot be named to protect the identities of his victims, pleaded guilty to sample counts of two counts of oral rape and 13 counts of sexual assault of the eldest girl at locations in Co Tipperary on dates between October 2011 and October 2014. She was aged between 6 and 8 at the time.
During the course of a Garda investigation the girl disclosed she had seen her younger five-year-old sister being abused by their grandfather on two occasions. However her sister does not recall the incidents.
He also pleaded guilty to 16 counts of oral rape and 19 counts of sexual assaults of a third granddaughter on dates between October 2010 and June 2013.
This girl, a cousin of the other victims, was aged between four and seven years old at the time of the abuse.
She told the Central Criminal Court that her grandfather bribed her with sweets and made her do things no four-year-old should do.
Mr Justice Michael White set a headline sentence of 17 years before taking the accused’s full admission and remorse into account and imposing a 12-year sentence with the final year suspended.
