This article is from page 12 of the 2006-11-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
A LATVIAN man who sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl in a shop in Kilkee has been given a suspended jail term.
Valentins Gzibovskis (23), of Marine Apartments, Kilkee, pleaded guilty to sexual assault, at O’Curry Street, Kilkee, on January 14 last.
Inspector Michael Gallagher told Ennis District Court yesterday (Monday) that the accused grabbed his victim between the legs, outside her clothes, after he followed her and another girl along the street.
The court heard the victim suffered bouts of anger and temper tantrums in the wake of the assault, which were connected with it.
Defending solicitor Eugene O’Kelly said the offence was committed on the accused’s birthday, after he had consumed a large amount of alcohol. Gzibovskis has lived in Kilkee for the past two years and works locally. His employer told the court he is a reliable, hard-working employee.
“He certainly has no recollection of the incident in the shop. He had not considered himself to have deviant sexual tendencies,” he said.
Judge Aeneas McCarthy noted that the assault was outside the girl’s clothes and said, “A sexual assault on a girl of that age is extremely serious. The courts have to take this seriously.”
He took the guilty plea into account and said the assault was “at the lower level” of the scale. He imposed a seven-month sentence and suspended it for two years. He placed the accused on the Sex Offenders Register for five years.