A food delivery boy who “abused the trust” of a schoolgirl who ordered a takeaway by sexually assaulting her has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Arslan Cheema (29) of Brookview Avenue, Artane, Dublin 5, pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual assault committed in a car outside city center student accommodation in April 2021.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court previously heard that the injured party was 19 at the time and had been on a first-name basis with Cheema, from whom she regularly ordered takeaways.

In a victim impact statement, which she previously read to the court, the student addressed Cheema, saying he had destroyed her self-image and her confidence.

“You hurt me so much; no one can begin to imagine what you have done to me,” said the young woman.

She said she was devastated after the attack and washed her hands so hard they bled.

“I felt so disgusted with myself. I had a fall. I ended up in the hospital,” said the woman, who added that she was put on antidepressants and antipsychotics, which made her gain weight and feel like a zombie.

Sentencing on Monday, Judge Orla Crowe said there was a “level of familiarity, comfort and trust” between Cheema and the victim, whom he abused.

She said aggravating factors included breach of trust and victim impact.

She said the victim impact statement described the “profound” effects on the woman, who “believed she could trust him (Cheema) and he abused that trust”.

Judge Crowe said Cheema’s apology when contacted by the woman’s friend that night “rang hollow in this court”, however she noted he had “belatedly” acknowledged the harm he had caused the victim.

In mitigation, she imposed an 18-month sentence, fully suspended under strict conditions for a period of three years.

The judge noted that Cheema will also be on the sex offenders’ register.

Det Gda Conor Mackey previously told Lisa Dempsey BL, prosecuting, that the woman told police she was collecting food at the front gate of the student complex where she was living at the time.

She said it was dark at night and the weather wasn’t great, so she climbed into the passenger seat of the parked vehicle.

The woman told police that Cheema put her hand on his penis and tried to kiss her.

She said she felt very uncomfortable and was “frozen and shaken”, guessing it lasted about 10 seconds.

The woman asked Cheema “What about you?” and said he had not had sex and that his partner was pregnant.

She said it was a proposal from him to get into the back of the car and he grabbed her face and tried to kiss her. He told her to get out of it, and she left the car, slamming the door.

The student returned to her apartment and notified her friend and then the police.

Cheema was arrested and gave a different account to the guard, saying they were friendly and he felt they could talk about “sexual stuff”.

He has no previous convictions.

Gda Mackey agreed with Michael D Hourigan SC, defending, that Cheema was “minimizing it”, but pointed out that there was often a “delayed recognisance” by an offender and that he had pleaded guilty.

He regularly sends money to his mother in Pakistan and has a young child, the lawyer said.

A number of submissions were made to the court on his behalf.

Mr Hourigan asked the court to consider imposing a suspended sentence with strict conditions. He told the court on Monday that Cheema had lost his job since the previous hearing because of the publicity associated with the case.