A MAN WHO raped and sexually assaulted his younger sister over a seven year period has been jailed for 12 years.

Kyle Jinks (31) was convicted at the Central Criminal Court of 21 sample counts of rape and four sample counts of sexual assaults on dates between 2008 and 2014.

The court heard that his younger sister, Leah Jinks, had waived her right to anonymity to allow her older brother to be named.

Ms Jinks was between 11 and 17 years old, while her older brother was aged between 14 and 20 when he abused her over a seven year period at the family home in Co. Sligo.

The abuse included inappropriate touching of her genital area, digital penetration of her vagina, rape and one incident of anal rape.

Jinks, of Slievemore, Ballytivnan, Co. Sligo maintains his innocence, does not accept the jury’s verdicts and intends to appeal, the court heard. He has 25 previous convictions including for burglary, possession of explosives, public order and road traffic offences.

Imposing sentence today, Mr Justice David Keane said the significant breach of the trust was an aggravating factor in this case.

He said other aggravating factors included the victim’s young age and vulnerability and the “considerable harm” and trauma caused to her by the offending.

The judge also noted that the offending took place in the family home, which ought to have been a place of safety, but was instead a “place of fear” and that Jinks engaged in a “pattern of persistent offending” over a protracted period of time.

Referring to the victim impact statement, the judge noted Ms Jinks’ assertion that an older brother was supposed to protect and watch out for his younger sister, but he became the person she feared the most.

The judge said the statement outlined how the abuse affected every aspect of the victim’s life.

He commended Ms Jinks for her courage and determination during the criminal process and wished her well for the future.

Mr Justice Keane set a global headline sentence of 14 years in respect of the rape counts.

The judge said he would adjust the headline sentences on individual counts to reflect that Jinks was a juvenile for part of his offending, adding it would not be appropriate to reduce the headline sentence for any offences committed by Jinks when he was 20 on the grounds of immaturity or age.

The judge imposed a sentence of 12 years, having considered the available mitigation and Jinks’s personal circumstances.

Mr Justice Keane noted that Jinks declined to co-operate with the Probation Servcies to complete a probation report. The defendant is assessed at very high risk of re-offending and moderate risk of sexual re-offending.

The judge noted the evidence from the trial was of a a “highly dysfunctional family background” and that the family moved frequently. The court was told that Jinks’ offending occurred in various properties where the family were living at the relevant times.

Mr Justice Keane said there was “no logical basis” on which to suspend any portion of the sentence and directed two years post-release supervision of Jinks.

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Having set a global sentence of 14 years in relation to rape offences, Mr Justice Keane said he would adjust the headline sentences on individual counts to reflect Jinks’s age at the time of offending. Having considered the mitigation and Jinks’s personal circumstances, the judge imposed sentence on each count, with all sentences to run concurrently.

The judge imposed a sentence of 12 years in respect of the rape offences committed when Jinks was 20.

He reduced the global headline sentence of 14 years to eight years in relation to rape offences committed by Jinks when he was aged between 14 and 17. The judge imposed sentence of six years on these counts.

Mr Justice Keane reduced the global headline sentence of 14 years to 12 years on the rape offences commited when the defendent was 18 and 19. The judge handed Jinks sentences of 10 years on these counts.

In relation to the sexual assault charges, Mr Justice Keane noted Jinks was a juvenile at the time and said he would set a headline sentence of 10 years for an adult, which he reduced to six years to reflect Jinks’s age at the time. He imposed a sentence of four years.

The judge directed all sentences to run concurrently and backdated them to when Jinks entered custody.

The court heard that in one incident, the victim was listening to a Walkman in her bedroom, when Jinks came into the room. She was around 11 years old at this time.

Jinks sexually assaulted her, then raped her. She was crying, while Jinks started to whistle towards the end. Afterwards, he said: “Thanks, I enjoyed that” before he left the room, the court was told.

The court heard that Jinks raped and sexually assaulted his sister on other occasions.

When she was around 12 years old, Jinks came into her bedroom again while she was listening to a Garth Brooks song. Jinks sexually assaulted her, then raped her anally. He was whistling while he left the room, while she was crying in pain.

On another occasion when the victim was approximately 13, she was playing videogames in her room when Jinks came in. They played videogames together for a short while, before he tripped or shoved her to the ground, then raped her.

In a separate incident, Jinks told the victim after he’d raped her that he’d get her a car for her birthday if she didn’t tell anyone what he’d been doing.

The victim made a complaint to gardai in November 2019. Jinks was arrested in 2020 and denied the allegations.

Mr Justice Keane noted the mitigation included Jinks’ background, longstanding mental health issues and personal circumstances.

Jinks has two children. He has a history of alcohol and drug addiction, which the judge noted had been described as a coping mechanism.