Limerick Man Sentenced to Seven Years for Rape of Teenager

 Limerick, – A 26-year-old Limerick man, Damien Long, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for the rape of a 17-year-old girl in 2018, following a trial at the Central Criminal Court. Long, of Abbeyvale, Corbally, was convicted earlier this year despite pleading not guilty, and the court heard harrowing details of the assault, which included degrading remarks and a lack of remorse from the perpetrator.

The victim, who was pinned down and raped after refusing Long’s advances, endured a traumatic ordeal marked by violent language. Long told her, “I love it when you squirm,” and “I love watching you go through pain,” continuing the assault despite her pleas to stop, stating, “I will not stop because I am enjoying it.” After the attack, while the victim cried in the bathroom, Long callously remarked, “A boy has to do what a boy has got to do when he is horny,” before locking her in his bedroom and leaving to go for a drive with a friend. She escaped when he returned and unlocked the door.

In a victim impact statement presented at an earlier sentencing hearing, the woman described the profound impact of the assault on her life. Previously a “happy child” with interests in clothes and make-up, she turned to alcohol, self-harm, and experienced familial conflict following the rape, resulting in 23 hospital admissions for self-harm episodes. She expressed that Long, someone she once believed loved her, had “destroyed her life,” leaving lasting emotional scars.

Justice Mary Ellen Ring, sentencing Long to eight years with the final 12 months suspended, described the rape as “an act of violence of the most invasive nature,” aggravated by Long’s degrading language and his “cavalier attitude” toward the crime. Noting his lack of remorse and continued denial of guilt, Justice Ring set a headline sentence of nine years, reduced to eight, with the suspension conditional on Long engaging with the Probation Service for 12 months. Long, who had no prior convictions at the time of the rape but now has 24 for drug dealing, road traffic, and public order offences, was ordered to have no contact with the victim, directly or indirectly, while in custody and for five years post-release.

Justice Ring acknowledged the victim’s resilience in moving forward despite the trauma and wished her well for the future. The woman, while not objecting to Long being named in reports, has chosen to remain anonymous.