A YOUTH HAS been charged with sexually assaulting a female during a robbery along the Grand Canal in Dublin.

The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, appeared at the Dublin Children’s Court.

He was charged with sexual assault, threatening to kill or serious harm and assault causing harm to the complainant.

He also has a charge for robbing her of her phone and her coat, total value, €1,620, during the same incident which allegedly occurred at the Grand Canal in the south west of the city on a date in February this year.

The teenager was remanded in custody to appear again later this month.

A date has to be fixed for a preliminary hearing to decide if his case should remain in the jurisdiction of the Children’s Court or be transferred to the Circuit Court which has wider sentencing powers.

Under section 75 of the Children Act, the juvenile court has discretion to accept jurisdiction in several types of serious cases, by taking into consideration age and level of maturity of the accused.

This procedure involves hearing a summary of the prosecution evidence followed by submissions by the defence after which the judge gives a ruling on the issue.

Comments are closed as legal proceedings are ongoing.