George Gibney: why did it take decades for the alleged sexual abuser to face new charges?

George Gibney was arrested on Tuesday in Florida after a Garda request was made to the US State Department to extradite him to Ireland to face charges relating to alleged historical child sex abuse.

The 77-year-old former swim coach, who avoided trial on sexual abuse charges in 1994 after successfully challenging his prosecution in the High Court, is now accused of 78 counts of indecent assault and one count of attempted rape relating to four girls; and the alleged attempted rape of one of the girls.

All four were minors, aged between eight and 15, and were coached by Gibney.

They made complaints to the Garda between 2020 and 2022 after the BBC and Second Captains podcast Where is George Gibney? was aired in 2020.

But why did it take over 30 years for Gibney to face fresh charges - and what happens next?

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally explains the background.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon

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