Elderly Arva man avoids jail for abuse

An 86 year old former farm labourer received a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to the sexual abuse of two children over 60 years ago at the Central Criminal Court this week.

Read last week's case: Arva man to be sentenced for abuse of children

John Joe Kiernan (86) with an address at Forthill, Arva, Co Cavan, repeatedly abused the brother and sister when they were aged between four and ten years. He raped the girl in her bedroom and threatened to “bury her” after another attack.
Justice Michael White said that if Kiernan was a younger man the court would be imposing a serious custodial sentence but, given his age and ill health, he did not think it was appropriate to jail him.

Kiernan pleaded guilty to six sample counts of indecently assaulting one boy between 1958 and 1963 and five sample counts of indecently assaulting the boy's younger sister between 1959 and 1963.

He also admitted raping this girl in her childhood bedroom on an unknown date between 1959 and 1964. All the offending took place on or near the victims' family farmland in Arva where Kiernan worked as a farm labourer.
He imposed sentences of eight years for the rape and five years and two years for the indecent assaults. He suspended all sentences in their entirety on condition that Kiernan keep the peace.

In his sentencing, he noted that Kiernan has already served some time in prison for indecent assaults on three boys and one girl. This offending took place between 1963 and 1973.
The case was heard last week but adjourned for sentencing on Monday, October 23.