Paedo priest who abused children for almost 20 years accused of breaching court order

Daniel Curran appeared at Downpatrick Magistrates Court last week charged with breaching his lifelong SOPO on August 12 this year.

It’s alleged the 72-year-old, from Bryansford Avenue in Newcastle, breached the order by loitering at Tullymore National Activity Centre without permission of his designated risk manager.

Following a brief hearing District Judge Amanda Brady adjourned the case to September 22.

The last time Curran was at court, he smiled as he walked free after being handed a 200 hour community service order for sexually abusing a boy more than 20 years ago.

Curran indecently assaulted the 12-year-old during an overnight stay at his family cottage in Tyrella, Co Down. Downpatrick Crown Court heard the victim did not make any complaint to the police until 2015 and when he was questioned about the allegations, Curran told cops he was a “hopeless alcoholic” at the time and couldn’t specifically remember the victim being at the cottage.

The pervert did however admit that he had “deepest regrets” for the numerous bouts of sexual activity that he “indulged in at that time” but that he had not had a drink since July 1994.

Sentencing Curran in September 2018, Judge Piers Grant said: “It was your typical modus operandi to take young boys to this remote cottage where you would abuse them sexually.”

Judge Grant warned the sexual predator if any further offences came to light, the order was no indication “that you will not receive a custodial sentence” for them.

He told the disgraced ex-priest, who was then facing sex abuse charges for the sixth time, his offending was a “gross breach of position and trust on your part”.

At an earlier hearing Curran pleaded guilty to a single of indecently assaulting a male child on a date unknown between January 2 and 6, 1991. A registered sex offender since 1995, Curran has received 15 years of jail sentences — both immediate and suspended — for similar offences in 1977, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990 and 1991.