Enniskillen Court House
AN ENNISKILLEN mother-of-two who lied to police about being gang raped by three Lithuanian men because she didn’t want her husband to find out she was having an affair has been jailed for three months.
33-year-old Magdalena Brojek told police and her husband that she was abducted by three foreign men and raped at an unknown address.
Brojek, of The Sidings, Breandrum, Enniskillen, pleaded guilty to a single charge of wasting police time by making a false report when she appeared before Enniskillen Magistrates Court.
Outlining the background of the case, a prosecutor explained that on July 24 last year, the defendant’s husband contacted police requesting their assistance.
Brojek had claimed that she had been raped by three foreign men and gave details of the case.
As a result of these claims police carried out extensive enquiries and spoke to a taxi driver who told them he collected Brojek from her home at around 6.30pm the previous day.
The taxi driver recalled a conversation in which she said she was going to meet a man for the first time whom she had met over social networking site Facebook.
The next morning at around 4.50am, the taxi driver got another phone call from her asking to be collected at that address. When asked by police what state she was in, the taxi driver replied she appeared to be fine.
The court heard that Brojek’s husband returned home from work at around 10pm the previous night and the defendant arrived home early the next morning making the claims.
Officers drove around Enniskillen for three hours looking for the scene of the alleged incident. They obtained CCTV footage of the area but officers could not see images of the car or men described by Brojek, however they did capture images of the accused in the taxi on her way to the rendezvous with the other man.
As part of police investigations, the defendant was asked where the underwear she was wearing at time of the alleged incident was, to which replied she was still wearing them, however she then told officers they were at home and refused to give them over.
A short time later Brojek told her husband and police that she was lying about the three men and that it was actually an Irish man who raped her.
She claimed that she had went to his home where he dragged her into the bathroom and raped her. The man was identified and police approached him over the claims, however he said that it was consensual.
A text message sent from the defendant to the Irish man earlier that day stated: “Don’t tell police I was there.”
Medical examinations of the accused showed no evidence of any injuries.
Brojek refused to give police officers her mobile phone, but it was later seized as part of investigations where text messages sent between the defendant and the alleged rapist were discovered.
The messages were sent on July 23 and into the next morning, the day she claimed she was raped.
More text messages were sent on July 26 which said: “Did you like the other night?” Then another was sent the following day saying: “Don’t think I don’t want to see you again because I do.”
It then emerged during police interviews that she had lied about the rape allegation as she was ‘angry with her husband’ and didn’t want to admit where she really was.
The prosecutor told the court that police spent some 210 man hours on investigating the claims at the cost of £10,500 and £4,400 was spent on medical evidence and other expenses.
Defence solicitor Niall Bogue told the court it was a ‘rather unfortunate state of affairs’.
“She returned home and gave a false statement to her husband,” he continued.
“It wasn’t her who gave that statement to police, she then went with the events and she should have told police immediately but unfortunately, to her remorse, she did not do that.
“It then expired out of control. She simply panicked and felt she had to make something up but she now realises her options were very wrong and is extremely remorseful for the inconvenience.
“It didn’t take police long to figure out she was wrong.”
District Judge Nigel Broderick then stated that it cost the taxpayer some £15,000 in costs.
Mr Bogue continued: “She did enter a guilty plea at the first opportunity and she has no convictions in this jurisdiction but has one in her native home.
“She is a mother-of-two and is now separated from her husband. It has been a difficult and emotional time for her.”
Judge Broderick stated that she wasted police time adding that it was at the higher end of seriousness.
“To make this allegation and police were very concerned about what they heard. It is a harrowing and serious crime but then to realise it was false is a serious matter.
“In all the circumstances the custody threshold has been crossed.”
Brojek was released on her bail of £500 to appeal the sentence.
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