Kildare brothers jailed for multiple rapes of relatives

TWO Kildare brothers have been jailed for the rape and indecent assault of three young relatives at their family farm almost 40 years ago.

Neville Moody (52) of Cherryville, Kildare Town was convicted following a trial at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Tullamore, Co Offaly of two counts of raping his young niece and one count of indecently her brother on dates between 1 January, 1987 and 31 December, 1989.

His brother Norman Moody (53) of Clonsast, Bracknagh, Rathangan, pleaded guilty on the morning of his trial at the Central Criminal Court to three counts of indecently assaulting the same girl and one count of indecently assaulting a second niece also during the same dates.

The three complainant siblings waived their anonymity to allow the Moody brothers to be named in the reporting of the case, and are the nieces and nephew of the two men.

They were aged between four and half and eight years old at the time of the offence and had been living in a mobile home on the brothers’ farm at Clongarret, Clonbullogue, Co Offaly.

Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo sentenced Neville Moody to a consecutive term of nine years before he suspended the final year of the sentence for two years.

He sentenced Norman Moody to a consecutive term of four and half years with the final six months suspended for six months.

Mr Justice Naidoo noted that Neville Moody raped his niece when she was between five and eight years old at the family farm after she was instructed to go to the main house from their mobile home to carry out errands.

The judge noted that there was evidence during the trial that the rapes occurred regularly and Neville often used a plastic shopping bag as a condom.

There was also evidence from a witness who said she met the young girl in “extreme emotional distress” around that time and there was blood on her clothes that “appeared to be around the vagina area”.

The trial heard that a nephew was also indecently assaulted by Neville Moody when the teenager rubbed his penis against the young boy – then aged between six and eight years old – in what Neville Moody said was a game called “the cow and bull”.

The brothers were challenged about the abuse at the time and the children were not interfered with again.

Complaints were not made to the gardaí until 2020 when a niece reported the abuse. Neville Moody was arrested but denied the allegations in a subsequent garda interview. He claimed that Charlotte and Kenneth were lying.

Norman Moody pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting one of his nieces during the same period which involved him making the young girl touch his penis, when aged between 16 and 19 years old.

He also admitted indecently assaulting a second niece when she was around four and a half years old by putting his penis in her mouth. She said he held her head in his hands during the abuse and she felt she was going to be smothered.

The abused nephew said he didn’t form a proper relationship with his mother because of the abuse, and stated how he found it difficult to come forward with the complaint.

“It is vitally important that you came forward,” said the judge, acknowledging that by reporting the abuse, they may help others who have been impacted similarly to make complaints to gardaí.