A 38-year-old man, believed to be Malaysian, who works as a child psychiatrist in Ireland, has been sentenced to 8 and a half years in prison for grooming and sexually abusing a girl.
The Irish Times reported that Amirul Arif Bin Mohd Yunos was working at a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) center, where he groomed and sexually abused a teenage girl, causing her “painful and severe trauma.”
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The offences took place at different locations
The victim was not formally his patient but Yunos was known to her parents, who had asked him to engage on an ad hoc basis with their daughter who was experiencing mental health difficulties.
The girl was 15 when most of the incidents occurred and was 16 when the final incident occurred in September of last year.
The abuse started with inappropriate touching, before escalating to include oral sex and penetration. The offences took place at several locations including in a car, at his home, in her home and in his workplace.
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“I’m now afraid of men and life itself”
In a victim impact statement read out in court by prosecuting counsel Derek Cooney BL, the victim shared that she blamed herself, thinking she “induced” the abuse and “deserved it.”
She said she would always question the intentions of people who try to help her now, and that she’s scared of men and even of living.
“He took something from me that I can never get back, and now I’m afraid of men and of life itself. The abuse has had an agonising impact on me emotionally and psychologically,” she said.
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She’s now dealing with ongoing mental distress
The court heard that the victim and her parents wanted Yunos to be named but preferred to stay anonymous. The now 17-year-old is dealing with ongoing mental distress, the court was told.
Yunos pleaded guilty to 6 counts of engaging in a sexual act with a child under 17, 1 count of sexual exploitation of a child and one of meeting a child for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
He doesn’t have any prior convictions and has been in custody for the last 14 months due to this case.
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Also read: 34yo Religious Teacher Hit with 7 Charges for Raping & Sexually Assaulting 14yo OKU Student in Johor
