Hi °C | Lo °C A man of 63 has admitted sexually assaulting a 15-year-old schoolgirl in a park last year.
James Gallagher from St Columb's Well in Londonderry pleaded guilty at the city's Crown Court yesterday to committing the offence at the Bay Road Park on July 24, 2011.
The court heard Gallagher pushed her to the ground, before kissing her on the lips and forcing his tongue into her mouth.
He then sexually assaulted her.
The girl escaped when she agreed to meet him the next day.
She then flagged down a passing motorist who alerted police.
When he was arrested Gallagher told officers that he thought the girl was aged 17 to 20 and he said she had consented to any sexual contact between them.
Defence barrister Des Fahy said Gallagher had been in custody for the past 15 months, the equivalent of a three-year jail sentence.
Judge Piers Grant remanded Gallagher in custody until he's sentenced on Friday.
