GAA star accused of assaulting boy, 12, says he was 'protecting himself'
At Ennis Circuit Court today, the jury heard that Mr Gilligan made a pre-prepared statement to Gardai at Shannon Garda Station on February 19th 2024 in response to the then allegation that he assaulted a 12 year old boy with a stick at the Jamaica Inn hostel on October 5th 2023.
On Friday, the jury was also told that the 12 year boy that Mr Gilligan is alleged to have assaulted sustained a fractured bone in his left hand. Medical reports from October 2023 show that the boy on examination also had a 2 cm wound to his right forearm, a 2 cm wound to his right shin, bruising to his right shoulder while medics also believed that the boy lost consciousness briefly earlier on October 5th 2023.
The boy's hand was placed in a splint and he was advised not to engage in contact sports for one month after its removal later on October 20th 2023. Photographs of the boy's injuries were also shown to the jury along with the muck-stained clothes that the boy was wearing on October 5th.
In evidence, the boy's father said that he first brought his son to a VHI clinic at Raheen, Limerick on the evening of October 5th 2023.
He said: 'Once they (medical staff) started cutting his clothes off him they were finding more and more injuries.'
He said: 'They found he had soiled himself which led them to believe that he was unconscious at some stage.'
He said that medics at the VHI Clinic made the decision that the boy should be transferred by ambulance to the A&E at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). The boy's father said that he didn't believe his son's initial story that he had fallen off his bike.
He said: 'I definitely didn't think that he fell off a bike. He was covered head to toe in muck.' The father said that his son 'had a swollen hand and he was limping. He was talking quite fast as well and he was pale so I imagine adrenaline and shock."
The father told the jury today that he got Niall Gilligan's phone number on the evening of October 5th after his son had told him what had occurred earlier where Mr Gilligan is accused of assaulting the boy with a stick. Niall Gilligan (file photo) (Image: ©INPHO/Donall Farmer)
Mr Gilligan (48) of Rossroe, Kilmurry, Sixmilebridge, denies the charge of assault causing harm with a stick at the Jamaica Inn hostel, Sixmilebridge on October 5th 2023.
In evidence, the father said that he phoned Mr Gilligan and said: 'I said I am currently in A&E with my son who you just viciously attacked.' The father said that Mr Gilligan did not respond to the allegation.
In his account of the phone call, in his prepared statement read out in court by Dec Garda Noel Carroll, Mr Gilligan said: 'He said that his son got hurt. I made no comment to that after his son and others had broken into my building and caused extensive damage, including lighting a fire, releasing my fire extinguishers, breaking windows, writing graffiti."
Mr Gilligan said that he decided there and then to take legal advice 'as soon as I could about this call and make a formal complaint to the Gardai about the damage and trespass'.
Mr Gilligan was formally arrested on suspicion of assault at Shannon Garda Station on February 19th 2024 and accompanied there by his solicitor, Daragh Hassett, Mr Gilligan denied any assault and said that on October 5th 2023 at the Jamaica Inn hostel: 'I acted in a reasonable manner to protect myself from injury and assault from a person or persons unknown to me in the conditions that prevailed.'
In the statement running to five pages, Mr Gilligan added: 'I acted in a reasonable manner to protect my property from destruction by fire and further damage.' He said: 'I didn't know who or what was coming at me that night."
'Something was coming at me, wasn't retreating or calling out to me so I had to defend myself as any reasonable person would. I feel sorry for the boy but the fact is that if he and others hadn't broken into my property, lit a fire, stole the keys and caused other damage, this incident would never have happened."
He said: 'Since this incident, there has been despicable commentary about me over what actually happened - none of which is true. I am glad that I have the opportunity to set the record straight."
On the incident with the boy at the Jamaica Inn, Mr Gilligan told Gardai that he realised on the evening of October 5th 2023 'that I wasn't alone in the building'.
He said: "I went back down slowly picking up a wooden stick I found on the ground. As I entered the hallway, I heard voices and then saw two people running away to my left towards the external door I had come in. I then heard footsteps fast coming behind me over my right shoulder. I felt I was going to be attacked so to protect myself I drew out with the stick on two occasions and then kicked out twice.
'I shouted at the person to get back as I did this. At that stage, I could see that I was dealing with a male youth. I grabbed him by his coat or jacket and brought him out of the building. We went around the back to see where the other two intruders had gone to. When we got around the back we got entangled in the dark and fell on top of each other on a slippery path under the pine trees."
Mr Gilligan said that he told the youth 'never to again enter my property". He said: 'I proceeded to walk him out to the front gate. I asked him his name at this stage. He gave his name. He made no complaint of any injuries to me.'
He said: 'At that stage, I met Pat Donnellan who was parked outside. I told him that managing the property was a nightmare.' Mr Gilligan said that he had been "very concerned about fire and vandalism at the Jamaica Inn hostel'.
He said: 'Around this time there were rumours in Sixmilebridge that I was going to lease the building as accommodation for asylum seekers." Mr Gilligan added: 'There was resistance locally to this and there was no truth in that rumour as I had never been approached but I was concerned about an arson at the property especially after a fire had been lit and fire extinguishers were discharged.'
Mr Gilligan said that as he had every concern that the building would be burnt out, he said that rang the Gardai on October 4th just before lunchtime and the call rang out. He said: 'I called into Sixmilebridge Garda Station a few times that day but did not get to meet any Garda on duty." He said that he called to the Garda Station on the morning of October 5th 'but there was no one there'.
Mr Gilligan said that he purchased the Jamaica Inn hostel in 2022 and sold it on in late 2023 to a company in Shannon who required accommodation for staff.
At the conclusion of the evidence on Friday, Judge Francis Comerford told the jury that they had heard a lot of evidence today.
He cautioned: 'Don't come to any firm conclusions in your own minds until you have heard all the evidence, the speeches by the lawyers and the charge from me.'
The trial continues before a jury of seven men and five women on Monday.
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Judge Maguire, who commended the victims for the 'powerful' impact statements submitted, said the assaults were predatory in nature and for Feeney's sexual gratification. Feeney has 85 previous convictions in Northern Ireland, including 23 relating to sexual crimes and some of which include sexual assault of a child. Feeney has also been convicted of rape and is on the Sex Offenders Register. Judge Maguire said Feeney doesn't appear to have anything near to full insight and protested at having a lack of memory. Noting that the maximum penalty on each count was five years, Judge Maguire determined that a proportionate global headline sentence was one of five years. He said that while Feeney did not cooperate in interviews, he did plead guilty. He said that Feeney was elderly 'but not so old that he is immediately at risk of dying in prison'. Having regard to the totality principle, Judge Maguire sentenced Feeney to five years in prison and said he was not suspending any portion. At a sentencing hearing earlier in the week, Feeney asked that he be able to attend via video link for the judgement. However, he was hauled before the court and stood in the dock to hear Judge Maguire deliver his judgement after the court consulted with the victims. In total, Feeney was charged with nine counts of sexual assault against three victims in Donegal on dates between 1993 and 2005. Feeney pleaded guilty to five counts on a full facts basis, while the other counts were taken into consideration. Detective Garda Robin Doyle outlined the case to State barrister Ms Fiona Crawford BL. One of the complainants told how she was 10 years old when one of the incidents occurred. Feeney placed his hand down her trousers and inside her underwear, touching her private parts with his hands. The court heard that the incident 'lasted for a few minutes'. The complainant told Gardai that it 'was weird' and recalled Feeney smelling of body odour and cigarettes. 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She said Feeney felt all around her body and then placed his hands inside her top and her underwear. She recalled 'the smell of fags' from Feeney, who sexually assaulted her on another occasion when he also placed a hand inside her clothing before stopping when he heard someone else approaching. When Detective Garda Doyle initially interviewed Feeney, he denied all of the allegations. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week The court heard victim impact statements from all three victims. One told how she felt that her innocence was robbed by Feeney and she is now filled with 'confusion and constant worry'. She said he took over her childhood and added: 'He robbed me of my childhood memories and my innocence. He had no right to take this from any child.' She added: 'It's not something that will go away. I have to live with this for the rest of my life.' A second victim said the assaults still have an effect, physically, emotionally and spiritually. 'I felt that my innocence was taken away from me very young and I no longer felt safe or protected,' she said. She recalled how she often tried to hide what had happened and covered it up. She told no-one as she felt shame and said: 'There was always the shadow of the hidden secret.' The woman recalled having difficulty connecting emotionally and how it affected many more aspects of her life. 'I carried a sense of confusion,' she said. 'I spent many years thinking about coming forward and opening up, but I was overwhelmed by the shame and the sorrow it would bring.' Her innocence and security were replaced by anxiety and sadness, which shaped the way she saw both herself and the world around her. 'The memories of the abuse haunt me,' she said. 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