Co Antrim man jailed for sexual abuse of his step-siblings to have his sentence cut by three years

Senior judges reduced the term imposed on Dennis Allen from 14 to 11 years because most of the historic offences were committed as a youth.

Allen, now aged 49 originally from the Ballymena area, can be named after both victims waived their right to anonymity.

In 2022 he was convicted of raping and indecently assaulting his step-sister Sara when she was as young as five. He further molested her while promising “something nice” and making threats not to tell anyone.

A jury also found him guilty of indecent assault and other serious sexual offences against his step-brother Gordon. Most of the abuse occurred when Allen was himself aged between 13 and 15.

He originally received a 14-year term, with half to be served in custody and the rest on licence. Allen was also placed on the sex offenders’ register and disqualified from working with children.

Following an earlier failed attempt to have the convictions quashed, he mounted a separate challenge to the sentence imposed.

Defence lawyers argued that the trial judge should have made a greater reduction for the fact that Allen was in law a child for most of the relevant period.

Ruling on the appeal, Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan acknowledged it was a difficult sentence exercise due to the span of offending against two victims and the passage of time.

She held that it had been incorrectly described as a campaign of rape without fully reflecting the difference between childhood and adulty culpability.

Dame Siobhan stressed serious crimes were committed against two victims who will suffer lifelong harm, but cited case law for the decision reached.

“An allowance must be made for the fact that this additional offending all occurred when the appellant was less culpable because he was a child,” she said.

“That is the law which we think the judge has not properly applied.”

Confirming the substitute term of 11 years imprisonment, the Lady Chief Justice commended Allen’s victims for their bravery.

“We understand that no sentence can fully repair the pain and damage caused by such sibling abuse,” she added.

“However, the sentence we have imposed fully vindicates their position and it is a public record which we hope provides some solace and deterrence to others.”