An FCA corporal was found guilty yesterday of raping a woman private after a Mass for deceased FCA members in the midlands almost three years ago.
A jury of seven women and five men took just an hour and 20 minutes at the Central Criminal Court to convict the 23-year-old man of the offence, which was committed against the woman, now 22, in a building next to a hotel on November 19th, 1995.
The man, who cannot be named to protect the victim's identity, was remanded in continuing custody to July 24th for sentence.
Mr Justice O'Donovan requested the preparation of a victim impact report on the woman and both a probation and psychiatric report on the defendant.
The jury heard both had attended a meal in the hotel after the Mass and had stayed on into the evening drinking with other colleagues.
The court heard the defendant asked the woman to accompany him outside, supposedly to reprimand her "for letting down the uniform" by kissing another colleague in the hotel foyer.
But the woman said he went to kiss her when they were outside and she tried to push him away. He dragged her to a building and put his hand over her mouth to stifle her screams as he raped her.
The defendant claimed she became upset while they were talking. She leaned into him for comfort. They kissed and she consented to sexual intercourse.
Gardai gave evidence that the defendant admitted he had put his hand over her mouth to stop her protests.