Hitchin pensioner James Mahoney jailed for child sex offences
A Hitchin pensioner has been jailed for 32 months for sexually assaulting two young girls over a period of 18 months.
Divorced James Mahoney, 69, of Harkness Court, Franklin Gardens, three times put his hand inside the knickers of a child aged 13 to 14 and once touched a girl’s vagina over her clothes when she was aged either 10 or 11.
As he jailed Mahoney at Cambridge Crown Court, Judge Mark Lucraft QC told him : “Your offences have had a physical and psychological impact on these two girls and also their parents.”
He praised the girls for revealing what had happened to them, saying: “It takes enormous courage on their part to make the complaint they did.”
Mahoney pleaded guilty to three offences of sexual activity with the older child, in August and September 2012 and in June/July 2013.
He also admitted one offence of sexual assault against the other girl in about September 2013.
In addition to jailing him, the judge also imposed an indefinite sexual offences prevention order, restricting Mahoney’s access to children under 16 and ordered him to sign the sex offenders’ register for five years.
Prosecutor Michael Procter said the older girl reported what had happened to her mother and police were alerted in August last year. Mahoney denied it.
The second girl reported her allegation about a month later and again the defendant denied anything happened.
In victim impact statements read to the court, both girls said they had been anxious about having to give evidence and were relieved they did not have to
Mitigating, Bill Maley said Mahoney had acted completely out of character and was “genuinely remorseful” about the effect of his actions.
He added: “Mahoney accepts the experience will remain with them for the rest of their lives.
One can only hope that these young girls will turn into women who will still be able to have a normal existence and the effect of this will lessen over the years. But clearly it will never go away.”
The court heard that Mahoney, who lives alone, suffered a heart attack after the complaints surfaced and has had a pacemaker fitted.
The barrister said the defendant was supported in court by his daughter, sister and friends.
“He has been a well-liked man and appears to have been the life and soul of the party and helpful. He has ruined that reputation.
“He has lost pretty much everything because of this, but it was his choice.”
