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A CONVICTED SEX offender who harassed his neighbour by following her into her apartment and ordering her to give him her underwear has been jailed for 18 months.
Padraig Hopkins (41), who has been on the Sex Offenders Register since he was sentenced to four years in prison in 2008 for a false imprisonment and a sexual assault charge, also took the woman’s bra and knickers from the laundry room in the apartment block and wore them before asking her what she thought.
Hopkins, of The Glen in Waterford, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to harassing Rutha Sventriata on 26 June 2014 at Leinster Road in Rathmines.
Screamed and ran
Garda Paul O’Hara told prosecuting counsel Fionnula O’Sullivan BL, that Ms Sventriata lived in the same apartment block as Hopkins. When she arrived home from work, she saw Hopkins at the front door.
He followed her into her apartment and screamed at her to give him her underwear. He then ran away when she screamed at him.
Gda O’Hara told the court that prior to this incident Ms Sventriata went to collect her laundry in the basement when she saw Hopkins wearing her underwear, causing her to scream at him.
Hopkins was arrested and admitted he followed her into her apartment and said he had wanted to tell her that he was moving out and she had no reason to be afraid of him. He admitted he had been stealing her underwear from the laundry room for around a month.
Judge Martin Nolan noted that Hopkins had a difficult personality and his behaviour towards the injured party in this case had been “insidious and threatening”.
The judge imposed a three-year sentence with the final 18 months suspended.
Previous convictions
He told the court that had the facts in this case wouldn’t have seemed so serious if taken in isolation, but he had to consider Hopkins’s previous sexual assault conviction when sentencing.
Hopkins, who has 16 previous convictions, claimed he was sexually assaulted as a child by a now-deceased neighbour and that female underwear formed part of the abuse he suffered.
Defence counsel, Kevin McGrave BL, said the reason for his offending was rooted in acts committed on him as a child.
Gda O’Hara agreed that no threats or violence were used against Ms Sventriata and that Hopkins said he had been drinking all night before the offence.
Mr McGrave said the defendant was keen to get into a programme to receive regular treatment.
Judge Martin Nolan noted the psychological report showed Hopkins to be a “very damaged human through no fault of his own”.
“He has been left scars of sexual abuse and he has reacted in a certain way,” said Judge Nolan, adding that “the public have a right to be protected”.
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Getting a custodial sentence but no mention of any type of program to put this guy on. No wonder he keeps reoffending. Stupid system.
If he was a pimp he would have avoided a jail sentence and the sex offenders list ….. the choices some people make eh ?
#bringbackcareerguidanceteachers
There needs to be a complete overhaul of the way sentences are handed down. It seems all you need these days is a decent x factor type hardship story or an expensive solicitor to get off. Pun completely intended.
18 months for a fetish!?
Surely a man like this should be sent for psychiatric care rather than prison? Absolutely no consistency whatsoever in the Irish judicial/legal system.
“Hopkins, who has 16 previous convictions, claimed he was sexually assaulted as a child by a now-deceased neighbour and that female underwear formed part of the abuse he suffered.
Defence counsel, Kevin McGrave BL, said the reason for his offending was rooted in acts committed on him as a child.”
Standard defence by sex offenders these days with no proof or record of conviction needed and of course the person he accuses of abusing him is conveniently dead.
al ca think about it. why would anyone in their right mind go around stealing woman’s nickers.Really to send him to jail without some form of counselling is counterproductive.
I’m not saying he should be sent to jail without some form of counselling…not the point I’m making at all.
Simply pointing out that part of every sex offenders defence to excuse their behavior is to claim that they were abused as children and they don’t have to prove it and Judges take it as Gospel and use it to give lesser sentences.
I’m no expert in this kind of stuff either from the perspective of being an actual knicker thief or a psychologist but it’s got to be some reason why he’d do this, it’s either nature or nurture, not every person who’s abused as a child goes on to steal knickers that’s true, but maybe somewhere in his psyche this individual manifested his experience through the mediem of stealing knickers. I don’t know how you’d prove it, could anyone?
He should move to Tokyo, you can buy used ladies underwear in vending machines. I didn’t buy any, I swear.
God love his new neighbours when he’s out in 7 months and back living in Rathmines
“you’re knicked mate” is what the arresting officer said
Another dangerous man I say well done to the Judge for locking him up.
A Snatch and sniff merchant .
Sick and twisted doesn’t describe him
Abused does.
Some nicked my new boxers off the line last week. Now really happy about it, beggars even took the five pegs.
could he not just go and buy some women’s underwear ? or is it more the scent of a woman ? either way he needs intense treatment .
Generally is is considered to be a combination of the sexual thrill combined with ‘possession’ – the thief knows he will never have the individual so he takes something intimate which gives a sense of possessing her.
What a pervert.
So the judge thought the incidents in isolation weren’t that serious. I wonder would he think the same if it was his wife or daughter. If he’d done that to someone close to me I don’t think I could stop myself from doing him serious harm.
But you go home after being found guilty of running brothels …
18 months laughable. There is always an excuse for these people
What have Pavee point to say about this
Jeez.
Some weird people around nowadays.
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