{"id":561163,"date":"2026-07-21T18:12:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T18:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/561163\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T18:12:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T18:12:12","slug":"falcarragh-predator-to-be-sentenced-for-sex-offences-on-nine-young-victims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/561163\/","title":{"rendered":"Falcarragh predator to be sentenced for sex offences on nine young victims"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Donegal man who subjected nine young victims to sexual crimes over a 17-year period will be sentenced next week.<\/p>\n

Neil Ferry can now be unmasked as the predator behind a series of terrifying incidents in the 1980s and 1990s.<\/p>\n

The ordeals have left lasting impacts with his brave victims, who asked that Ferry be identified while wishing to retain their right to anonymity.<\/p>\n

Some of the victims were as young as five when they were targeted by Ferry, who was brought to Letterkenny Circuit Court<\/a> for a sentencing hearing by prison officers.<\/p>\n

The 69-year-old of Ballyness, Falcarragh, will be sentenced next Tuesday by Judge John Aylmer. He is currently being held in the medical wing of Mountjoy Prison in Dublin.<\/p>\n

He was remanded in custody earlier this year when he was found guilty on 34 charges by a jury after an 11-day trial.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The jury found Ferry unanimously guilty on 18 counts of sexual assault, 10 of indecent assault, five of attempted indecent assault and one of an attempted sexual assault.<\/p>\n

The offences related to nine separate complainants and spanned dates between 1981 and 1998 at several different locations within County Donegal.<\/p>\n

Ferry pleaded not guilty when he was arraigned before Judge Aylmer and his barrister, Mr Colm Smyth SC, told the court that his client does not acknowledge the verdict of the jury.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the outset, he pleaded not guilty to 60 charges with 25 of those later withdrawn by the prosecution while the jury was directed to acquit the man on a 35th charge, one of an alleged indecent assault from 1978.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ferry sat emotionless as details of his depraved offending were outlined by Detective Garda Eugene Organ to Barrister for the State, Ms Fiona Crawford BL.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou heard with clarity the way they gave their accounts,\u201d Ms Crawford had told the jury. \u201cYou heard clear memories, of a descriptive nature, and you heard how they described where they were positioned at the time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

After being found guilty, Ferry exclaimed from the body of the court: \u201cAll the lies work. I must start telling lies.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the trial, one complainant, a female, recalled how she stood and prayed \u201cthat this would all stop\u201d. The woman\u2019s voice quivered as she recalled the incidents and she said: \u201cI promised that I wouldn\u2019t shed a tear for him\u201d before continuing with her evidence.<\/p>\n

Under cross examination from Mr Smyth the woman said she was adamant with her recall of matters: \u201cI remember as a child what happened to me. That memory will not go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another complainant said that she was sexually assaulted\u00a0 \u201cseven to 10 times, if not more\u201d by Ferry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One man gave harrowing details of incidents, including one where Ferry “tucked his ankles around my ankle” before sexually assaulting him when he placed his hand down his underpants.<\/p>\n

A further complainant said she was 11 when Ferry came from behind her and grabbed her breasts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was very creepy,\u201d she said. \u201cHe would say uncomfortable things\u2026As a child, I didn\u2019t like being around him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another of the victims told the trial that she was \u201cmore developed\u201d as a 10-year-old and Ferry would come from behind her and \u201cbrush against\u201d her breast area.<\/p>\n

\n You may also be interested in\n <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Sadness<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"'Take<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Detective Garda Darren Carter told how the defendant replied in an interview following his arrest: \u201cI can\u2019t believe my ears what I am hearing\u201d.<\/p>\n

Earlier in the trial, Mr Smyth said that when the allegations were put to his client, Ferry responded: \u201cI never touched any of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The victims gave harrowing impact statements, which were read out in court.<\/p>\n

One woman, who read her own statement, said she did not fully understand what was happening at the time, but she felt \u201cuneasy, confused and afraid\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt powerless and unsafe,\u201d she said. \u201cI struggled, feeling fear, shame and embarrassment. I found it hard to trust others and it changed the way I saw myself and the world around me.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said she carried the feelings of anxiety, distress and unease for over 30 years.<\/p>\n

She added: \u201cI felt that something was broken so deep inside me that cannot heal. It is a pain so raw that I often wonder how life would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another victim said she wanted to tell her mother about the abuse, but couldn\u2019t. \u201cI have carried this with me for many years and it has stayed with me in adulthood,\u201d she said. \u00a0<\/p>\n

One man said that Ferry had \u201ctaken away my childhood. He robbed me of my innocence and safety. I was constantly looking over my shoulder to see if he would appear.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man said he was in a \u201cstate of anxiety, frightened and vulnerable\u201d and asked: \u201cWhy couldn\u2019t Neil Ferry just tell the truth and say what he had done?\u201d<\/p>\n

While he said Ferry \u201chas destroyed me\u201d, the man added: \u201cNow, it\u2019s time to rebuild my life and move on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another of the victims said that Ferry took away his innocence and the trial was \u201cphysically and emotionally unbearable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others told how they were unable to trust others and were unable to tell their parents.<\/p>\n

One woman said that she was \u201chere to speak for the little girl who was too afraid to speak all those years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was too scared, confused and hurt,\u201d she said. \u201cI endured pain that no little girl should have to go through. I lived in confusion and fear. I was too young to understand what happened. I felt trapped and powerless.\u201d<\/p>\n

She told how she \u201ccarried such a painful secret\u201d for so long and that it \u201ctook all my strength\u201d to sit in the same room as Ferry during the trial.<\/p>\n

Another woman said that she has suffered a \u201cprofound long-term impact\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel that Neil Ferry\u2019s actions cannot be overstated,\u201d she said. \u201cThat little girl is still with me. . . I was the innocent child who was preyed upon. It left me with images that no child should have to carry.\u201d<\/p>\n

That victim added: \u201cI can finally put my arms around that terrified little girl and tell her she doesn\u2019t have to endure pain anymore; she will be protected.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another of Ferry\u2019s victims said that her sense of safety and trust \u201cchanged immensely\u201d after she was set upon by Ferry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI often prayed for protection from God,\u201d she said, noting that Ferry was a \u201cvile predator hiding in plain sight\u201d, while a further victim said they were \u201cmade feel shame at a young age\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the sentencing hearing, Mr Smyth<\/a> said that his client fails to acknowledge the verdict of the jury and maintains his innocence.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He said Ferry comes before the court with no previous convictions and has not come to any further adverse attention of Gardai.<\/p>\n

Mr Smyth told the court that Ferry has been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness, pulmonary fibrosis, which has a life-expectancy of three-five years after diagnosis, although some people can live for more than 10 years. Mr Smyth asked the court to take his medical condition into account.<\/p>\n

He said Ferry, if released from custody, would: \u201cCome back to a community where he would suffer some isolation and shunning in that society.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Donegal man who subjected nine young victims to sexual crimes over a 17-year period will be sentenced…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":561164,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,237166,43],"class_list":["post-561163","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-neil-ferry-sex-crimes-donegal","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561163","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=561163"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561163\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/561164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=561163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=561163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=561163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}