A former Christian brother will be sentenced next month after being found guilty of historic sex offences against young school boys.
Paul Dunleavy (88), of Glen Road in west Belfast, was on trial for 32 counts of indecent assault, one of attempted buggery and four of gross indecency.
The offences were committed at Christian Brother schools in Belfast, Co Armagh and Co Down while he was a teacher and later principal.
During the course of the trial at Belfast Crown Court the jury were directed by Judge Patrick Lynch KC to find him not guilty on one count of indecent assault.
Following around five hours of deliberations over two days, the jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on 31 counts of indecent assault, one of attempted buggery and two counts of gross indecency.
After further deliberations, the foreman told the court that they reached majority guilty verdicts of 11-1 on the two remaining counts of gross indecency.
As the verdicts were read out, victims were seen crying in the public gallery and were comforted by family members.
The offences were committed between 1964 and 1991 against nine male complainants.
Dunleavy was a teacher at Armagh Christian Brothers Primary School between 1960 and 1966.
He later moved to the Abbey Christian Brothers Primary School in Newry from 1966 to 1973 before returning to the school in 1987 as headmaster until his retirement in 1998.
Dunleavy also taught at St Aiden’s Christian Brothers Primary school off the Whiterock Road in west Belfast between 1973-77 later becoming its headmaster between 1980 and 1985.
He was also headmaster at Gortnamona Secondary School in west Belfast between 1985-87.
The jury heard evidence from the nine victims in the case.
Whilst one victim recalled being told to “pick a bar of chocolate and go back to class’', after being subjected to sexual abuse, another victim told the jury how he was “beaten to a pulp’' and sexually abused by the “evil, evil, evil man”.
During the opening of the Crown Case last week, senior prosecutor Neil Connor KC told the jury: “You will hear that the defendant is also a convicted child sexual abuser.
“You will hear that he was convicted on two separate occasions of a series of sexual offences against children in his care at a number of schools where he taught.’’
On Thursday, Mr Connor told the court that in June 2023 Dunleavy was sentenced to 10 years in prison for 23 historical child sex offences.
A jury had found him guilty of 19 counts of indecent assault, one of attempted buggery and three of gross indecency.
Defence counsel Gary McHugh KC said he would not be applying for a fresh pre-sentence report from the Probation Service as one was prepared for his sentencing hearing last year.
He told the court that he would be seeking an up-to-date medical report on the defendant’s health “which is failing”.
Mr Connor said he would be furnishing the court with victim impact statements ahead of sentencing.
Judge Lynch said that once all the prosecution and defence material was before him he would pass sentence on October 25.
The defendant was remanded back in custody ahead of sentencing.