A JUDGE HAS said it is “quite extraordinary” that a TD and numerous others who provided character references for a former government advisor convicted of sexually exploiting a 13-year-old at a Christian children’s camp failed to mention the victim or the “vile nature” of the crime committed.

Judge John Edwards made the comment today at a hearing for Daniel Ramamoorthy (40), who was appealing his sentence of two years and four months.

Ramamoorthy’s lawyers said the sentence was excessive and argued that the sentencing judge had failed to give sufficient weight to their client’s “exceptional background” and history of public service.

Judge Edwards, sitting with Judge Tara Burns and Judge Patrick McCarthy, noted that numerous character references had been submitted on Ramamoorthy’s behalf, including one from a TD.

It was “quite extraordinary”, he said, that not a “single one” mentioned the victim or the “vile nature” of the offending.

Judge McCarthy said the court knew from “bitter experience” that people held in the “highest regard” by society were capable of serious offending.

Ramamoorthy was convicted following two trials of one count of sexually exploiting the child in 2017 by asking him to send a picture of his penis over Snapchat. A jury in the first trial failed to reach a verdict.

Ramamoorthy, with a previous address at Whitebarn Road, Rathfarnham, and Wolnzach, Germany, also pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing child sexual abuse material, referred to in law as child pornography.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard he was found with three images and one video depicting young boys engaged in sexual activity with each other and with an unknown adult man.

He continues to maintain his innocence in relation to the sexual exploitation offence.

Ramamoorthy was jailed for two years and four months by Judge Sinéad McMullen at the Central Criminal Court on 24 March last year. She described the sexual exploitation offence as a serious breach of trust.

She said Ramamoorthy had been acting as a mentor and leader at the camp when he met the victim, “who should have been safe with him”.

Ramamoorthy, described in court as a motivational speaker, social media influencer and entrepreneur, had at one point acted as an adviser to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on start-ups, his sentencing hearing was told.

He is the son of a diplomat and was educated at Yale University in the USA.

The judge set a headline sentence of three years for the exploitation charge, reducing it to two years and four months after taking mitigation into account.

She imposed an 18-month sentence for the possession charge and ordered that both sentences run concurrently.

Launching an appeal against sentence at the Court of Appeal today, Hugh Hartnett SC, for Ramamoorthy, argued that the headline sentences in both cases were “excessive” and that the trial judge had failed to give sufficient weight to mitigating factors.

Hartnett also contended that part of the final sentence should have been suspended.

In response to questions from the court, Hartnett acknowledged that Ramamoorthy had been served with a deportation order, but said he should not be deprived of the possibility of a suspended term “just because he lives outside the jurisdiction”.

Regarding the sexual exploitation charge, counsel said the appellant had asked the boy to send a picture of his private parts, but that no image was sent and there was no further contact between them. He said the offending “falls at the very low end”.

Hartnett said the trial judge had accepted evidence that Ramamoorthy was someone who “has done a lot of good in his life”.

“So his background is significant,” counsel said.

The barrister argued that insufficient weight had been given to mitigation, noting the judge had said it was rare to see character references of this calibre.

He said the case should be distinguished from others involving multiple offences.

Hartnett further argued that the court had failed to give appropriate recognition to the appellant’s “exceptional background and public service”.

He said there were many countries Ramamoorthy “will not be allowed to go now”, adding: “that is part of the punishment.”

Other mitigating factors, counsel said, included that Ramamoorthy had come from abroad to face the charges and had been granted bail. He said gardaí accepted that he had been “as helpful as he could be”.

“He has chaired various committees, he has been a mediator, he has been the organiser of events. He has had a hugely constructive past, much of which was done for the good of less advantaged people. That must be a very significant matter,” counsel added.

Hartnett said the trial judge’s overall approach had been “too severe”.

In response, Shaun Smyth BL, for the State, said Ramamoorthy had been in a position of mentorship over the boy and that there had been a “gradual escalation” during a conversation involving a game of truth or dare before the request for a picture was made.

“It wasn’t simply blurted out in a void,” he said.

He also referred to the ongoing effect on the victim, who described sleepless nights afterwards and suspicions about people’s motivations, particularly role models and mentors.

Smyth submitted there was no error in the headline sentences.

He said the judge had recognised the “impressive mitigation” advanced on behalf of the appellant and reduced the exploitation sentence by eight months – almost 25%.

Judge Edwards said the court would reserve judgment and deliver its decision early next week.