A Dublin man has admitted sexually abusing his younger brother more than 30 years ago.

The brother said he did not tell anybody about it for years, because he thought it was his fault.

The court heard this abuse started when the boys were around 17 and 11, and living in the family home in Dublin.

The 17-year-old first abused his younger brother in around 1982 when his parents were out.

The younger brother said he wasn’t sure how many times it happened after that, but he would particularly remember the accused coming home on Sundays while he was in bed and being frozen as he knew what was going to happen.

He said he told nobody - believing it was his fault.

He eventually confronted his brother in an email in 2011.

His brother admitted what he did, with the younger brother later telling him face to face that he would never be the person he should have been because of the abuse.

In a victim impact statement, the younger brother told the court the trust was broken, his innocence was taken and the revelations have torn his family apart.

The now 55-year-old accused made a voluntary statement to gardaí admitting the offences and pleaded guilty to indecent assault this afternoon.

He will be sentenced at a later date.