Gerry Adams' Brother Liam Jailed for Raping his Own Daughter, Aine

The brother of former IRA leader Gerry Adams has been jailed for raping his own daughter three times.

Liam Adams was sentenced to 16 years for a string of child sex offences against his own child. Adams, of West Belfast, was convicted at Belfast Crown Court.

Some of the offences against his oldest daughter Aine, who is now aged 40, date back to when she was just four years old.

Adams, 58, had denied a string of charges including three counts of rape, three of gross indecency and four indecent assaults, which took place until his daughter was nine.

At the trial it was revealed Adams, a father of six, had been held in custody under tight conditions for his own safety, reported the Irish Times.

The case brought pressure upon former paramilitary leader Gerry Adams, who served in the Northern Irish Assembly at Stormont after the IRA laid down its weapons in 1998.

He faced questions about what he knew of the allegations and testified on behalf of his brother during a previous trial. It emerged that Gerry Adams was aware of sex abuse allegations against his brother as long ago as 1987.

That was when victim Aine Adams first made allegations against her father. No case was brought against Liam Adams at the time because she withdrew the claims.