Vintage car dealer who sexually abused teen jailed for 12 years

Sonya McLean

A woman who was sexually abused and raped as a teenager has told her rapist that “prison is not enough for people like you”.

The now 28-year-old woman, who read her victim impact statement during the sentencing hearing of vintage car dealer John Malone (79), said that nothing can convey the pain and suffering he inflicted upon her.

The woman said she had been “muted by fear” but she is now a woman who stood up against her abuser in court and who got her justice.

She said children who are abused “don’t stay little forever – we grow up and scream”.

“All I wanted was justice, for you to pay for what you did – you used money as a weakness and you exploited a child - I will never forgive you,” the woman concluded her statement.

Malone of Killadullisk, Killimor, Co Galway, had denied the charges but was convicted of 26 offences following a trial at the Central Criminal Court last April.

He was found guilty of 13 counts of rape, three counts of section 4 rape, three counts of attempted anal rape and seven counts of sexual assault.

The abuse occurred during the summers of 2010 and 2011, the court heard.

John Berry SC, prosecuting, told the court that the woman did not wish to be named herself but was happy for Malone to be named in reporting the case.

Sentencing the man on Monday, Ms Justice Melanie Greally said Malone groomed the child with the promise of large sums of money at a time when he was aware her family was struggling financially.

The court heard Malone was a prosperous businessman at the time, and ran a vintage car business in Galway.

The judge said the complainant had been “profoundly harmed” by the actions of Malone and that her victim impact statement was a “powerful expression of the extent to which the abuse has shaped her life and her relationships”.

The judge acknowledged “the profound harm caused to her as a result of the abuse she suffered at the hands of John Malone” and “in particular, the grooming employed by the convicted man exploiting her youth and vulnerability by creating financial incentives to ensure her compliance”.

Headline sentence

She set a headline sentence of 15 years for the offending, which she reduced to 12 years taking mitigating factors into account, including Malone's age, his obvious infirmity and the fact that two of his adult children have significant health difficulties.

She noted Malone continues to deny the charges and has displayed an “abject lack of remorse” as a result. When interviewed by gardaí, he denied any offending and made disparaging remarks about the complainant and her family. He claimed the allegations were motivated by financial gain.

The court heard that Malone was a family friend of the then-13-year-old child. He was 64 years old at the time of the offending, which began after he convinced the teenager to help him clean cars.

The court heard that in the first incident, Malone parked up in a secluded area and kissed the girl. These sexual assaults continued, escalating to oral rape and later rape.

The woman later told gardaí that Malone abused her on a weekly or potentially more frequent basis, with some of the incidents occurring in a camper van and included the man using a sex toy on her.

Malone would give the girl money ranging from €50 to €150. She was once paid €300 for working on the bog.

The court heard that the Director of Public Prosecutions placed the offending in the most serious category due to a number of aggravating features, including the disparity in age between the man and the victim, the vulnerability of the victim, the duration of the offending behaviour and the fact that Malone groomed the teenager.

Victim impact statement

In a victim impact statement, the now 28-year-old woman said she had provided a service to Malone and was getting paid for sex.

She said there was “so much taken from me that I will never get back”. She described sleepless nights and nightmares with him being the subject of those nightmares.

The woman said she didn’t find the counselling she attended to be “too helpful” as her counsellor told her that they knew the Malone family, and she struggled to trust them after that.

She said her siblings feel “a sense of responsibility” but she noted there was no way they could have known as they were children at the time.

The woman said she struggles when people touch her. She told Malone that “prison is not enough for people like you”, adding that nothing can convey the pain and suffering he inflicted.

Vincent Heneghan SC, defending, told the court that his client does not accept the verdict of the jury.

He asked the court to consider the fact that Malone is almost 80 years old and has no previous convictions.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.