an old one Sinn Fein The press officer, who admitted child sexual offenses, is expected to be sentenced at Derry Crown Court on Friday.

Michael McMonagle (43), whose address is Limewood Avenue in Derry, faced charges of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity and 13 counts of attempting sexual communication with a child between 2020 and 2021.

McMonagle pleaded guilty to all charges on September 23, having previously denied the charges.

He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register.

The former Sinn Féin press officer, who previously worked as a journalist, was suspended from the party in 2021 after police arrested him for child sex offenses.

Two press officers resigned from their jobs and the party in September after it was revealed they had referenced the now-convicted child sex offender, who went on to get a job at the British Heart Foundation.

Former newspaper editor Seán Mag Uidhir and Caolán McGinley, who once chaired Sinn Féin’s youth wing in Derry, resigned after they were said to have provided the party with references for McMonagle.

Sinn Féin has faced criticism over what it knows about McMonagle, particularly after the former press officer was photographed attending the same events as Michelle O’Neill and other senior figures in the party while working for the British Heart Foundation.

Ms O’Neill said she did not know McMonagle had been at the Stormont event organized by the BHF last February, although photographs of both of them emerged at the event.

The row set off a series of scandals that have affected the party in recent months, including former Lord Mayor of Belfast Niall Ó Donnghaile admitting he sent inappropriate messages to a minor and controversial allegations that north Belfast councilor JJ Magee also sent inappropriate messages. to a child.