A FORMER CHRISTIAN brother who would “lick” his pupils ears while sexually abusing them in class, has been found guilty by a jury of 15 counts of indecent assault.

James Treacy, 75, with an address at Ashford Close, Swords, Dublin, showed no emotion as a jury at Limerick Circuit Court found him guilty, by unanimous decision, of abusing all three male victims.

The court heard harrowing evidence from the victims, who were aged ten-years old and in fifth class at the time.

To protect the identities of the victims, the court ordered restrictions on identifying the school where the shocking abuse occurred.

Treacy has denied all of the charges which related to offences which occurred in the late 1970s.

The court heard evidence from Treacy’s victims who all said he would abuse them in front of one another while he taught a “military style” class.

His modus operandi, the court heard, was to place his hands down the front of the boys trousers and fondle their privates.

One victim told the court: “It was a military style class. What I mean by that is that we had to be neat and clean; Our hair had to be cut and we had to clean our ears, and if you’re ears weren’t clean, he would actually lick your ears.”

He said the accused became a friend of his family and would visit his home and go with them on family day trips.

The man broke down several times as he gave a chilling account of what Treacy did to him. “I couldn’t tell my mother what was happening,” he added.

Another victim told the court how Treacy reached inside his clothes and fondled him while whispering into his ear: “Look at this lump of jelly and watch it get hard.”

“It was horrific,” the man said.

He told the court he would be in “a panic” at home before going to school for fear of being targeted again by Treacy.

He told the court: “I used to, in my own little mind, stuff my vest down my pants, in the hope he would got to another pupil in the class.”

A third victim also broke down several times in court as he described Treacy abusing him in “full view of the class”.

The court heard the victim’s did not tell anyone about the abuse until they were contacted by gardai in 2007 investigating allegations about Treacy.

“I locked it to the back of my mind. That’s where I wanted it to stay,” the man said.

Treacy was convicted last month of two further counts of indecently assault on a boy at a school in the 1970s.

The court heard evidence that, after abusing some of the boys, Treacy brought them as a treat to meet his brother, the late Republic of Ireland soccer star Ray Treacy – who had no knowledge of the abuse – at a celebrity sports event.

The victim told the court how “Brother Treasaigh (Treacy)” gagged his mouth with a bar of soap and raped him over a urinal.

He said Treacy also burnt his genitals with a cigarette after catching him smoking in the school toilet.

Treacy was remanded on continuing bail for sentencing on all matters on 30 June.

Comments have been closed for legal reasons

Read: Former Christian Brother would ‘lick’ pupils’ dirty ears clean and fondle their privates, court told