Spoke inappropriately to girl (14) in foyer of garda station
Carlow Garda Station
A MAN pleaded guilty to speaking inappropriately to a 14-year-old girl in the foyer of Carlow Garda Station in the early hours of the morning in a case heard before Carlow District Court.
The defendant, who appeared before Judge Geraldine Carthy in a wheelchair, entered a guilty plea to the first count. A second count of inappropriate touching was subsequently withdrawn by gardaí and struck out.
The court heard that at 1.50am on 21 April 2023, the defendant approached the female victim in the foyer of Carlow Garda Station, where he spoke to her in a manner described as “sexualised in nature”.
Gardaí told the court that the victim was just 14 years of age at the time of the incident and is a young person in the care of the state. The girl also reported that he had touched her buttocks. She gave a full statement to gardaí, but declined to make a victim impact statement.
The defendant, who is from Kerry, has 11 previous convictions, the most recent of which was for a public order offence from June 2018. He also has a prior conviction for assault.
Solicitor Joe Farrell told the court that his client is currently engaging with the probation services in Kerry and that an updated report had been prepared in December 2025. He said it would be wise for the court to obtain a further probation update “given all the circumstances of the matter”.
Judge Carthy agreed, directing that a probation officer should liaise with the defendant to prepare an up-to-date report by 1 April, specifying that the fresh report should refer to existing reports already before the court.
