A 31 year old man has pleaded guilty to having sex with a 14 year old girl.
He was 24 at the time of the offence in Sligo and claimed he thought the victim was 18.
The Central Criminal Court in Dublin heard the offence dates back to September 2012, when the accused was 24 and the victim was 14.
They had been drinking at an apartment in Sligo with some other people when she says he forced her to have sex in a bedroom.
The victim – who was at a vulnerable time of her life – told gardai she had told him she was 14 and also pretended she was two months pregnant in the hope that it would put him off.
When the accused was questioned by gardai he told them he thought the girl was 18 or 19 saying ‘I’d know if she was 14 or 18’.
His barrister put it to the garda in court that the girl was quite mature for her age but the garda replied that she was a 14 year old girl.
The accused, who has a long list of minor convictions, was originally due to go on trial for rape but pleaded guilty to the defilement of a child under the age of 15.
He will be sentenced next week.
