Co Antrim pensioner jailed for sex assault

A 72-year-old Co Antrim man who sexually assaulted a woman in the hallway of her home whilst delivering a Chinese takeaway has been handed a 13-month sentence.
Scales of justice.Scales of justice.
Scales of justice.

Belfast Crown Court heard Craig Wright was caught carrying out the offence by the woman’s 14-year-old daughter, who returned home to witness her mother being attacked.

The pensioner appeared in court with a completely clear criminal record.

Originally from Carrickfergus but now living at Browns Bay Drive in Islandmagee, Wright was told by Judge Patricia Smyth that he will serve half of his sentence in prison, with the remainder on supervised licence upon his release.

He was also made the subject of a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order.

Wright carried out two sexual assaults on the woman in her Co Antrim home on August 5, 2015.

After he called at her door with her meal, the woman invited Wright to wait in the hall while she got her purse.

Once inside, Wright asked if the woman’s children were home. When she said no, he grabbed her by the throat, pinned her against a wall and sexually assaulted her.

As he was in the process of carrying out a second sexual assault, the woman’s teenage daughter – who had been out looking for her dog – returned with a friend and witnessed the incident.

The court heard that the woman described what happened to her as “painful but short-lived”.