Ireland Case No. 3056Sexual assault, indecent assault · Co. Donegal
Former teacher sentenced for 132 sexual offences in Donegal
Patrick Sharkey, an 83-year-old former teacher from Donegal, pleaded guilty to 132 charges of sexual assault and indecent assault against 19 young boys between 1970 and 1995. The offences took place while he taught at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine, Co Derry, at his parents' house in Clonmany, Co Donegal, and on trips to Dublin. He was arrested in Birmingham in 2022 on foot of warrants after living in France and was interviewed by Buncrana detectives three times in 2024 and 2025. He was remanded in custody at Letterkenny Circuit Court in May 2026 after victim impact statements were read. In June 2026, Judge John Aylmer at Donegal Circuit Court sentenced him to seven years in prison with the final six months suspended.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In court18 Dec
6 reports - Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced1 Jun
2 reports
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- Patrick Sharkey, an 83-year-old former teacher, pleaded guilty to 132 charges of sexual assault and indecent assault against 19 young boys.
- Where
- The offences took place in north Donegal, at Sharkey's parents' house in Clonmany, Co Donegal, at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine, Co Derry, and on trips to Dublin.
- When
- The offences spanned a 25-year period between 1970 and 1995.
- Investigation
- Sharkey was arrested in Birmingham in 2022 on foot of warrants after flying in from France, where he had been living, and was interviewed by Buncrana detectives three times in December 2024, February 2025, and May 2025.
- Charges
- Sharkey admitted on signed pleas to 132 charges, a mix of sexual assault and indecent assault, relating to 19 victims aged between seven and 16.
- In court
- The case was heard at Letterkenny Circuit Court over two days in May 2026, where victim impact statements were read and Sharkey was remanded in custody by Judge John Aylmer.
- Sentence
- In June 2026, Judge John Aylmer at Donegal Circuit Court sentenced Sharkey to seven years in prison with the final six months suspended, reported by some outlets as six-and-a-half years.
- Other details
- Sharkey had previously been convicted at Antrim Crown Court in 2023 and served a sentence at Maghaberry Prison in Northern Ireland for indecently assaulting children.
- The judge described the offending as calculated, premeditated, and predatory, involving significant grooming of the victims and a gross breach of trust on all occasions.
84 statements extracted from the articles
- whatA former schoolteacher from Donegal sexually abused 19 young boys over a 25-year period. (thejournal.ie)
- whatSharkey is charged with 132 sex offences. (rte.ie)
- whatSharkey is charged with offences ranging from indecent to sexual assault against 19 victims. (rte.ie)
- whatPatrick Sharkey, 83, a former teacher, admitted 132 sexual offences against 19 young boys over a 25-year period. (donegallive.ie)
- whatThe charges relate to 19 victims. (donegallive.ie)
- whatSharkey pleaded guilty to 132 charges of indecent assault and sexual assault relating to 19 victims. (irishtimes.com)
- what59 offences were in relation to one victim, while other victims were the subject of 15, 14, 10 and six counts. (irishtimes.com)
- whatOne victim was just seven years old when Sharkey began to sexually abuse him. (irishtimes.com)
- whatA former teacher sexually abused 19 young boys in Donegal and was jailed for six-and-a-half years. (thejournal.ie)
- whereAll of the alleged incidents took place in north Donegal. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSome offending took place at Sharkey's parents' house in Clonmany, Co Donegal, and some on trips to Dublin. (thejournal.ie)
- whereThe alleged abuse took place at locations in Donegal and Dublin. (rte.ie)
- whereSharkey abused victims during his time as a teacher in Coleraine. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSharkey regularly took victims to his parents' house in Clonmany for extra curricular activities. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSome offending took place at Sharkey's parents' house in Clonmany, Co Donegal. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSharkey was a teacher at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine during the time of his offending. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSharkey was a teacher at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine, Co Derry. (donegallive.ie)
- whereSharkey regularly took victims to his parents' house in Clonmany. (donegallive.ie)
- whenThe alleged offences took place on various occasions in the 1970s and 1980s. (donegallive.ie)
- whenThe offences spanned dates between 1970 and 1995. (thejournal.ie, donegallive.ie)
- whenThe alleged offences took place between 1970 and 1995. (rte.ie)
- whenThe charges span dates between 1970 and 1995. (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe abuse took place over a period from 1970 to 1995. (thejournal.ie)
- whenThe offences occurred over a 25-year period between 1970 and 1995. (donegallive.ie)
- investigationDetectives from the Buncrana Detective Unit brought Sharkey to court. (donegallive.ie)
- investigationGardaí arrested the accused at Letterkenny Courthouse by arrangement. (donegallive.ie)
- investigationSharkey was arrested in Birmingham in 2022 on foot of warrants. (thejournal.ie)
- investigationGardaí began an investigation following complaints of alleged abuse in the jurisdiction. (rte.ie)
- investigationSharkey was interviewed by gardaí three times, in December 2024, February 2025 and May 2025. (rte.ie)
- investigationSharkey was arrested in Birmingham in 2022 on foot of warrants after flying in from France. (donegallive.ie)
- investigationSharkey was interviewed three times by detectives and made only partial admissions. (donegallive.ie)
- investigationSharkey had been living in France when he flew into Birmingham in 2022 and was arrested by detectives on foot of warrants. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationDet Gda Johnny Gallagher from Buncrana Garda station outlined the evidence in court. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationSharkey was interviewed on three occasions by detectives. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeSharkey is charged with a number of sexual and indecent assault offences against at least a dozen young boys. (donegallive.ie)
- chargeSharkey pleaded guilty to all 132 charges, a mix of indecent assault and sexual assault. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeSharkey admitted on signed pleas to 16 counts of sexual assault and 115 counts of indecent assault. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey appeared in court on 110 historic sex abuse charges. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey was brought before a special sitting of Letterkenny District Court. (donegallive.ie)
- courtBail had been agreed and gardaí were satisfied with the conditions. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey's solicitor said his client was going forward on a signed plea. (donegallive.ie)
- courtThe case was adjourned to 27 January 2025 to seek directions from the DPP. (donegallive.ie)
- courtJudge Ciaran Liddy agreed and the case was adjourned. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey pleaded guilty to 132 charges of indecent assault and sexual assault. (thejournal.ie, donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey was remanded in custody by Judge John Aylmer. (thejournal.ie)
- courtThe case was heard at Letterkenny Circuit Criminal Court over two days. (rte.ie)
- courtSharkey came before the court on a signed plea. (rte.ie)
- courtSharkey was remanded in custody. (rte.ie)
- courtSharkey was remanded in custody at Letterkenny Circuit Court. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSeveral victims read out victim impact statements in court. (donegallive.ie)
- courtThe case was heard at Letterkenny Circuit Court. (donegallive.ie)
- courtJudge John Aylmer remanded Sharkey in custody. (donegallive.ie)
- courtSharkey was remanded in custody by Judge John Aylmer at Letterkenny Circuit Court. (irishtimes.com)
- courtSharkey previously served a sentence at Maghaberry Prison after being jailed at Antrim Crown Court in 2023, with three victims overlapping into the Letterkenny matter. (irishtimes.com)
- courtSharkey was sentenced at Donegal Circuit Court. (thejournal.ie)
- courtThe sentencing hearing took place at Donegal Circuit Court at Letterkenny Courthouse. (donegallive.ie)
- sentenceSharkey will be sentenced in June. (thejournal.ie)
- sentenceThe case was adjourned for sentencing in June. (rte.ie)
- sentenceSharkey will be sentenced next month. (donegallive.ie)
- sentenceSharkey is due to be sentenced in June. (donegallive.ie)
- sentenceSharkey was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison for a total of 132 charges. (thejournal.ie)
- sentenceJudge Aylmer reduced the sentence to nine years and three months with the final six months suspended. (thejournal.ie)
- sentenceJudge Aylmer sentenced Sharkey to seven years in prison with the last six months suspended. (thejournal.ie)
- sentenceSharkey was sentenced to seven years in prison with the final six months suspended. (donegallive.ie)
- sentenceThe judge announced a headline sentence of 14 years imprisonment. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey is 81 years old. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey is originally from the Inishowen peninsula and now lives in France. (donegallive.ie)
- otherThe charges related to a total of 19 victims. (thejournal.ie)
- otherSharkey was a teacher at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine during the time of the offending. (thejournal.ie)
- otherSharkey was previously jailed for 12 months in Northern Ireland for indecently assaulting children in the 1980s and the 1990s. (rte.ie)
- otherSharkey is originally from the Clonmany area and had a recent address in Belfast. (donegallive.ie)
- otherOne victim said he suffered at Sharkey's hands for four years, starting when he was 12. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey sat without emotion in the dock while victims spoke. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey was previously jailed at Antrim Crown Court in 2023 and served the sentence at Maghaberry Prison in Northern Ireland. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSome victims spoke of struggling in relationships, mental and emotional challenges, and seeking solace in alcohol and gambling. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe victims were between seven and 16 years old. (thejournal.ie)
- otherThe judge said the offending involved a significant amount of grooming of the victims. (thejournal.ie)
- otherThe judge described the offending as a gross breach of trust on all occasions. (thejournal.ie)
- otherSharkey had previously been given a two-year sentence in Northern Ireland and served one year in prison. (thejournal.ie)
- otherSharkey recently spent 10 days in hospital due to heart and lung conditions. (thejournal.ie)
- otherThe judge described the crimes as calculated, premeditated and predatory in nature. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey had already served a two-year sentence in Northern Ireland. (donegallive.ie)
- otherThe court noted Sharkey is 83 and in a relatively poor state of health. (donegallive.ie)
- otherSharkey cooperated with the Garda investigation by travelling into the Republic by arrangement. (donegallive.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 18 Jun2026Former teacher jailed for 132 historic sexual offences
Reports the sentencing of Patrick Sharkey at Donegal Circuit Court. No matching existing case. Offences took place while he taught at St Joseph's High School in Coleraine, Co Derry, and some victims were taken to Clonmany, Co Donegal.
convicted, Patrick Sharkey, 83, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkeyvictim, male - 1 Jun2026Former Donegal teacher who sexually abused 19 boys over 25-year period is jailed
Report of the sentencing at Donegal Circuit Court. No existing case in the list matches this case.
victim, maleconvicted, Patrick Sharkey, 83, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkey - 20 May2026‘Finally the victims will get justice’: Ex-teacher who abused 19 boys to be sentenced
Reports Sharkey's guilty plea to 132 charges at Letterkenny Circuit Court, details of the offending (19 victims, 1970–1995, Clonmany and Dublin), his arrest in Birmingham in 2022 after living in France, his prior 2023 conviction at Antrim Crown Court, and victim impact statements read in court.
convicted, Patrick Sharkey, 83, male, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkeyvictim, male - 20 May2026Former Donegal teacher who abused 19 young boys over 25-year spell remanded in custody
Adds details of the guilty plea to 132 charges, the 19 victims, the 1970 to 1995 timespan, the remand in custody and the planned June sentencing, plus background on Sharkey's earlier conviction in Northern Ireland.
convicted, Patrick Sharkey, 83, male, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkeyvictim, male - 20 May2026‘Rot in hell’: Brave victims confront abuser Patrick Sharkey in Donegal court
Court report on Sharkey's admission of 132 sexual offences against 19 boys. He was remanded in custody and will be sentenced next month. Offences took place while he taught in Coleraine and at his parents' house in Clonmany, Co Donegal.
accused, Patrick Sharkey, 83, male, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkey - 20 May2026Court hears of historical sex offences by former teacher
Court hearing at Letterkenny Circuit Criminal Court where victim impact statements were read and the accused was remanded in custody, with sentencing adjourned to June. Adds the number of charges, the victim count, the time span, the locations, and the garda interview dates.
accused, Patrick Sharkey, 83, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkeyvictim, male - 1 May2026Former teacher to be sentenced next month after pleading guilty to 132 offences against 19 boys
First report of the guilty plea at Letterkenny Circuit Court. Adds the number of victims and charges, the 1970 to 1995 date range, the remand in custody, and the June sentencing date.
accused, Patrick Sharkey, 83, male, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkey - 18 Dec2024Former Donegal teacher in court on raft of sex abuse charges
First court appearance reported in December 2024, with 110 charges against Patrick Sharkey. Existing case records describe a later guilty plea to 132 charges. The article says he was arrested at Letterkenny Courthouse by arrangement and that the alleged incidents took place in north Donegal.
accused, Patrick Sharkey, 81, male, named, irish (judged from name)Patrick Sharkeyvictim, male