THE mother of an Irish teenager who took her own life last month has claimed that the cyberbullied schoolgirl was sexually abused.
Grainne Gault's 14-year-old daughter Elisha went missing from Carrick-on-Suir, Co. Tipperary on March 17 before her body was recovered from the River Suir eight days later.
Grainne has now revealed that the teen had previously attempted suicide after being bullied online, and also alleged her daughter had been abused by a man “in a position of trust” as a young child.
After reporting the allegations to Gardaí, Grainne was told the the matter would not be pursued further in January 2018 - just months before Elisha's suicide.
Writing on Facebook, her devastated mum said she learnt of the abuse when Elisha started “acting out” six years ago.
Mrs Gault wrote: “Without knowing why, Elisha began to struggle from 2012. She withdrew and her behaviour changed and we became increasingly concerned.
Elisha was a student at Comeragh College in Carrick-on-Suir, Co. Tipperary“Myself and her father were extremely active in her life. Even though we split in 2010, we had a great co-parenting model and Elisha was very close to her father and adored him.
“After a few years of trying to understand why Elisha had been acting out, she finally disclosed that in 2012, she was sexually abused by a person known to her and in a position of trust.
“She was one of five victims at the hands of the same man.”
Grainne added that the family had made a complaint to Gardaí after Elisha divulged she'd been sexually abused in 2012, however the DPP told them the case would not be pursued in January.
Elisha was said to be "very upset" about the decision - which was made just three months before her death.
Mrs Gault said: “To find that the powers to be, the ones that are supposed to support you decided not to pursue it, it just feels like you’re out there fighting on your own”, she said.
Speaking about her daughter's separate ordeal at the hands of cyberbullies, Grainne said there had been a "series of unfortunate events" in the six days prior to Elisha's disappearance.
The schoolgirl's body was recovered from the River Suir on March 25“Elisha was subjected to a cyber-bullying incident that resulted in her locking herself in an attempt to end her suffering," she added.
"She felt like she was losing her friends. "She had gone out for a few hours with her friends on St Patrick's Day.
"She had returned home and she had broken one of the house rules. That resulted in her being reprimanded and having her phone took off her.
"Within a few minutes of me walking out of the room, I'd heard the front door going.
"We spent that moment until 1:30 in the morning searching for her".
Grainne said she initially thought Elisha might have gone to a friend's house to calm down, but as time progressed she felt worried that something terrible had happened.
She added that she was speaking out about her daughter’s ordeal to improve victim support services and raise awareness of issues including suicide in schools.
“This one is for you baby girl," she said. "You were so caring in nature and hated to see anybody hurting and even through your own plight you still tried to be a fun and friendly influence for those around you, who are missing you greatly.”
