Case No. 3083Sexual assault · Co. Sligo · 11 May 2024
Teen waitress sexually assaulted by Sligo pub boss jailed for 27 months
Brooke Coleman, 16, was sexually assaulted by her boss Paul Baker, 38, at The Crossbar pub in Gurteen, Sligo, in May 2024. Baker was sentenced to 27 months in prison at Sligo Circuit Court on 1 May 2026 after pleading guilty in January 2026.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In courtnot reported
- Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced16 May
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports20 statements extracted from the articles
- whatBrooke Coleman was 16 and working as a waitress at The Crossbar in Gurteen, Sligo (irishmirror.ie)
- whatPaul Baker, 38, was the publican and her boss (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThey stayed behind to have drinks and watch the Eurovision final (irishmirror.ie)
- whatBrooke's parents never gave permission for her to stay (irishmirror.ie)
- whatBrooke waived her right to anonymity (irishmirror.ie)
- whatBaker sexually assaulted her three times (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe first assault lasted 30 seconds and the second lasted 40 to 50 seconds (irishmirror.ie)
- whatBrooke's dad Damian was waiting in the car park outside (irishmirror.ie)
- whereThe family house is 400 metres from the pub (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe incident occurred between May 11, 2024 and May 12, 2024 (irishmirror.ie)
- whenBrooke confided in her parents on Monday, May 13, 2024 (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationCCTV footage was recovered showing the incident at the bar (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationHer clothes and phone were taken by the investigation team (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationThe following day she was taken to a sexual assault treatment unit in Galway (irishmirror.ie)
- courtOn May 1, 2026, Sligo Circuit Court Judge Keenan Johnson jailed Baker for 27 months (irishmirror.ie)
- courtJudge Johnson gave the €10,000 back to Baker's wife (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceBaker was sentenced to three years in prison with the final nine months suspended (irishmirror.ie)
- otherBaker is now in Castlerea Prison in Roscommon (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThey waited more than a year before finding out the DPP would charge him (irishmirror.ie)
- otherBaker brought €10,000 in court (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 16 May2026Teen sexually assaulted by boss has one word to describe seeing him face justice
Interview with victim Brooke Coleman describing the impact of the assault, the court process, and the sentencing; details of evidence presented by Sgt Helen Munnelly and the judge's reasoning.
victim, Brooke Coleman, 16, female, irish (judged from name)Brooke Colemanconvicted, Paul Baker, 38, male, named, irish (judged from name)Paul Baker