A man who “poisoned” his daughter's youth with years of sexual abuse after they reconnected when she was a child has been jailed for 11 and a half years.
The court heard that she first met her father when she was aged six, after her mother reconnected with him following a brief relationship which resulted in her birth. Ms Mullane then went to visit her father's home in Rainbow Cottage, Castlebaldwin, Co. Sligo and later to his home in Norfolk. She said she felt like “damaged goods” as a result of the abuse she suffered at the hands of her father. “I am never able to look into the mirror and not see his face or see him standing behind me,” she said.
The judge noted a number of aggravating factors, including the “elevated degradation” of the sexual abuse, given her young age. He noted it was a significant breach of trust and the abuse occurred over a five-year period, capturing most of Ms Mullane's childhood.