Irish woman is convicted of rape

Dublin-born nurse found guilty of raping a woman in hotel toilet

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Caxton Hotel in Brisbane where the incident took place

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Dublin-born, Anne-Marie O’Loughlin, was found guilty of raping a woman by the Brisbane District Court, Australia.

The Irish woman broke down in tears when she was found guilty of raping another woman in the toilets of Brisbane’s Caxton Hotel. 

According to the Brisbane Times, the 12-person jury took 13 hours to reach a decision. They found her guilty of two counts of rape and the deprivation of liberty of a 34-year-old woman. She was not found guilty of sexual assault.

The court heard that the victim claimed that although she had kissed O’Loughlin in the bathroom for three minutes she had not given her permission to digitally penetrate her. While being cross-examined she said she had shouted and pushed O’Loughlin’s hands away. O’Loughlin was trying to pull down her jeans when she screamed for security.

During an interview with the police O’Loughlin said that she had no memory of kissing the woman but admitted that it was possible. She added that it was not in her nature to force someone into a sexual act.

O’Loughlin’s lawyer, Damian Walsh, suggested that the victim could have made the allegation out of guilt as she is a married woman and could have been driven by fear or remorse.

Her husband told the court that he had become upset and agitated at the hotel when his wife revealed what had happened. He said that his wife was  “a nervous wreck” after the incident. He had called the police and attempted to detain O’Loughlin outside the hotel shouting she “molested my wife”.

The prosecuting lawyer, Chris Minnery, said that O’Loughlin had lied to the police. DNA swabs from three of her fingernails linked her to the victim. The victim has also given a details statement along with that of witnesses who testified that she was very upset when she came from the bathroom.

The court heard that O’Loughlin had been working as a registered nurse while living in Australia. She will be remanded in custody and sentenced in the New Year.
 

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