Woman forced into prostitution says she was scared for her life

A woman who was trafficked, sexually assaulted and forced into prostitution has said the abuse she suffered was so traumatic it has ruined her life.

Courtney Smith was abused by 71-year-old Oliver James MacCormack and three other men, who all preyed on vulnerable women who were addicted to drugs.

MacCormack, the last of the four to be convicted, was given a seven-year sentence on Thursday, with half to be spent in jail and half on licence. He has already spent almost three years in jail.

The defendant, whose address was given as HMP Maghaberry, was convicted on 40 counts with dates spanning seven years from 2015 to 2022.

The charges included multiple counts of human trafficking, supplying Class A drugs and controlling prostitution for gain.

The three other men - Kenneth David Harvey, aged 74; Derek Brown, aged 71; and 77-year-old Robert Albert Rogers - were previously sentenced, with Harvey and Brown jailed.

Oliver James MacCormack was convicted on 40 counts

Courtney Smith has waived her right to anonymity to tell BBC News NI about the abuse she endured.

She first met MacCormack when she was 17.

At the time, she was going through withdrawal from heroin.

She said she was desperate and vulnerable.

"Oliver would collect me at 9pm on Bankmore Street or my hostel," she told BBC News NI.

"He would usually give me heroin and then drive me to have sex with other men. He would also have sex with me.

"I was scared for my life. I told him every single time that I didn't want to do this.

"I actually screamed 'please help me', but no one did."

Ms Smith said MacCormack didn't care about the physical or mental state his victims were in.

"I wasn't even awake half the time," she said.

"When I was awake I was in that much pain that I felt like my body wasn't my own. I just had to blank it out and pretend that I was somewhere else.

"I pretended I was in another place, where I was happy - that's how I got through it."

Ms Smith said the trauma she has been through will "haunt her for the rest of her life".

"What that man did to me, I can't put into words," she added.

"I get flashbacks, I can't sleep at night, I feel like I am right back there. A certain smell can bring me back or a taste of a food just brings me back there. I feel like I am that wee girl again in his car and this is happening to me again."

Courtney Smith was one of nine women that MacCormack abused.

'Oliver got me hooked on heroin'

Another one of MacCormack's victims, who wants to remain anonymous, said: "Before meeting MacCormack, I'd only tried heroin a couple of times.

"Oliver got me hooked on heroin and orchestrated it that I became completely dependent on him to get my fix.

"One day I went from being employed in a company, aged in my early 20s, to overnight becoming an advertised escort, a heroin addict waking up sick every day; and stealing from my family to buy heroin from him.

"If I refused to have sex with one of the sex-buyers he had set me up with, he would not sell me any heroin and would block my phone number, leaving me sick for days.

"Sex with paying customers just became so normal. I would wake up every day merely existing and not living."

During police interviews MacCormack said: "I did help some girls who I saw on the streets in Belfast city centre who were drug addicts and homeless and whom I felt sorry for. I helped them by giving them money. I bought some clothes from Primark on occasion and gave them to some of the girls sometimes.

"I would give them a fiver or a tenner... I wouldn't want anybody's children to be in that position."

But police said MacCormack had committed a series of despicable offences against vulnerable young women.

Det Insp Rachel Miskelly worked on the case

Speaking outside the court following sentencing, Det Insp Rachel Miskelly said it was a case of horrific exploitation being carried out "by local men and on our doorsteps".

"They lined their pockets at the expense of young women whilst using them for their own sexual gratification. These girls have been used, controlled and treated appallingly," she said.

Det Insp Miskelly said she wanted to acknowledge the "tremendous courage" the victims had shown.

"These young women have been inspirational and I truly hope that others who are suffering are encouraged to come forward," the detective said.

"I promise you that we are here to listen to you and help you and bring those who would seek to use and abuse you to justice."

Public Prosecution Service (PPS) senior public prosecutor Kirsten McKevitt said the testimony of the victims were central to the case.

"As this case shows, for most people, selling sexual services is not truly a free choice," she said.

"Even when they escape their situation, many are left traumatised.

"Anyone paying for sexual services should know that they are contributing to the exploitation of another human being and, in many cases, the profits of human traffickers."

Who are the other three men convicted?

Kenneth Harvey, Derek Brown and Robert Rodgers were also convicted

Kenneth David Harvey, 74, was handed a two-year sentence in December 2024 for trafficking a woman and paying her for sexual services. Harvey, from Old Road in Lisburn, was told his sentence will be divided equally between prison and licence.

Despite his initial denials, Harvey pleaded guilty to a charge of human trafficking on dates between January 1 and June 30, 2020.

Derek Brown, 61, originally from Lisburn but now with an address listed as HMO Maghaberry was sentenced for human trafficking, controlling prostitution for gain, sexual assault, paying for sexual services and drugs related offences.

He exploited four "extremely vulnerable" young women and was given a six-year sentence in March 2025.

He will serve three years in jail and three on licence.

Robert Albert Rodgers, aged 77 and from Antrim Road in Belfast, admitted one charge of brothel keeping on dates between February 9, 2009 and June 8, 2022.

He also admitted three counts of controlling prostitution for gain spanning a period from February 3, 2015 to September 30, 2020.

He was subject of a two-year Probation Order which was imposed as an alternative to immediate custody.

Det Insp Miskelly said the four defendants were not part of an organised crime group, but "had a despicable commonality".

"They formed part of a network of older local men, who actively targeted young, vulnerable, local women for the purpose of sexual exploitation," she said.

She added that Robert Rodgers facilitated meetings between the women and sex buyers at a brothel, which he ran from his home in north Belfast.

If you have been affected by the issues raised in this article, help and support can be found at BBC Action Line.