A convicted rapist who once lived in Monaghan town has been given more time in prison for repeatedly breaking the rules that apply to him as a registered sex offender. Simon McGinley (52), formerly of Latlorcan Court, Monaghan, and originally from Dundalk, appeared before the Central Criminal Court in Dublin on Monday.
McGinley is the man at the centre of the 1990s "C Case". He was jailed for eight years in 1998 for raping a 13-year-old girl in August 1997. She became pregnant and had to go to the courts for permission to travel to the UK for an abortion, which her parents opposed. She was allowed to travel in December 1997.
In 2009 he was jailed for 21 years for the rape of an 86-year-old woman in her own home. He was released in 2021, subject to the notification requirements of the Sex Offenders Act.
What the court heard
Prosecuting counsel Fiona McGowan BL told the court that McGinley had repeatedly breached those requirements, which include telling gardaí when he changes address. Mr Justice Tony Hunt was told that McGinley had been given a two-and-a-half-year jail term at Dundalk Circuit Criminal Court last week for those breaches.
It is not the first time. McGinley was before the Central Criminal Court in 2023 over earlier breaches of his release conditions. On that occasion two years of his 2009 sentence were reactivated, with six months suspended. Because he has offended again since, Monday's hearing dealt with that suspended six months.
No solicitor in court
McGinley had no solicitor with him because of the withdrawal of services by criminal defence solicitors. That is the same legal aid dispute that has already led to Monaghan District Court and Circuit Court cases being put back. McGinley told the judge he was happy for the hearing to go ahead anyway.
The judge's warning
Mr Justice Hunt reactivated three of the six suspended months. He noted that they will run consecutively to, meaning after, the two-and-a-half-year sentence imposed in Dundalk.
"I want to bring finality to this matter," the judge said, telling McGinley he needs to start complying with the requirements. "All you have to do is give an address," he said. "I'm not going through this rigmarole. If you don't start complying, you will be sentenced over and over again in the circuit court."
McGinley agreed, thanked the judge and was taken back into custody.
Why the rules matter
The notification system under the Sex Offenders Act is how gardaí keep track of where convicted sex offenders are living once they leave prison. Failing to tell gardaí about a change of address is a criminal offence in its own right, which is why McGinley has now been sentenced in two different courts for it within a week.
Monaghan Brief does not identify victims of sexual offences, and this report is based on court coverage already published by the outlets listed below.
