Former Kincora resident awarded “significant six-figure sum” in damages
A former resident targeted by a paedophile housemaster at the notorious Kincora Boys’ Home has obtained a “significant six-figure sum” in damages, it was announced today.
The man, who is not being named, sued over the sexual and physical abuse he suffered after being sent to the facilities in east Belfast during the 1970s.
His legal action against the PSNI, Home Office and the Department of Health was resolved at the High Court without admission of liability or disclosing the level of payout.
But the man’s solicitor, Claire McKeegan, confirmed later: “My client is to receive a significant six-figure sum to settle his claim.”
The plaintiff sought damages for the ordeal he endured during the two years he spent as a teenager living at the now demolished children’s home.
At the centre of the action was the role played by senior member of staff William McGrath, who became known as the ‘Beast of Kincora’.
McGrath was jailed in 1981 for abusing boys as part of a paedophile ring operated within the care facilities.
The former housemaster, who died in the early 1990s, also held a leading position in the far-right loyalist movement Tara.
McGrath was allegedly allowed to target vulnerable young victims as a suspected MI5 agent so that more information about the grouping could be obtained.
Claims for negligence, misfeasance in public office, breach of statutory duty, assault and battery were advanced as part of the action.
Lawyers for the plaintiff claimed the RUC exposed him and other residents at Kincora to further risk by failing to properly investigate or prevent the physical and sexual abuse.
Following the settlement Ms McKeegan, of Belfast firm Phoenix Law, stressed how her client was targeted at a particularly vulnerable stage in his life.
“The abuse from William McGrath has had a severe impact on this man and his family,” she said.
“This settlement provides a welcome vindication for him, who has endured a lifetime of trauma over what went on in Kincora.”
The solicitor added: “State-sponsored abuse of teenagers was systemic in Kincora, and suppressed to protect those in positions of power and authority.”