Convicted rapist who harassed three female journalists jailed for 11 years

BreakingNews.ie

05-06-2025

A convicted rapist who threatened and harassed three female Sunday World journalists has been jailed for 11 years.
Mark McAnaw (53) refused to enter a bond before a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court which would have suspended the final 12 months of the 11-year sentence imposed for the harassment of Nicola Tallant, Amanda Brunker and Deirdre Reynolds.
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After Judge Pauline Codd had outlined the conditions attached to the suspended portion of the sentence on Thursday, McAnaw's counsel Rebecca Smith BL said her client did not wish to enter the bond as he found the conditions 'onerous'. As a result, the judge imposed the full 11-year sentence.
Judge Codd also ordered that McAnaw should have no contact either directly or indirectly with the women, should not approach them, go within 10 miles of their homes and workplaces or communicate with them for life.
McAnaw, previously of Letterkenny, Co Donegal, pleaded guilty to the harassment of Ms Tallant, Ms Brunker and Ms Reynolds on various dates in August 2023.
The court heard McAnaw repeatedly sent the three women emails and messages of a violent and sexually threatening nature, which escalated to him threatening to put a 'bullet' in one of them. He also referred to himself as an 'IRA Top Boy'.
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He also turned up at the offices of the Sunday World on Talbot Street and, when refused entry, he went to a cafe across the road. When gardaí approached him there, McAnaw was in the process of writing an email to Ms Tallant.
McAnaw is currently detained in the Central Mental Hospital (CMH). McAnaw does not accept his diagnosis of schizophrenia and has declined to take medication, the court was told.
His previous convictions include the rape of a foreign student in Donegal in October 2010, for which he was sentenced to nine years in prison in 2012.
McAnaw also has a 1989 conviction for kidnapping and convictions for assaults causing actual bodily harm from a court in Northern Ireland in 2011.
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He also has a conviction for aggravated assault after attacking a woman in her home in April 2018, for which he received a sentence of eight years and four months in June 2023.
This sentence was backdated to 2018 when he went into custody, with the final 16 months suspended for 16 years on strict conditions. McAnaw was released from custody on this sentence in July 2023 – one month before the harassment of the three journalists took place.
Ms Smith said her client instructs that he found it difficult to abide by the conditions attached to the suspended portion of the sentence imposed in 2023.
A handwritten letter from McAnaw was also handed to the court, which Judge Codd described as 'concerning'.
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Judge Codd noted that social media and online communication makes it easier to target journalists and others in public facing roles.
The judge noted women in the public eye are often targeted online and subjected to 'base and lewd threats and comments', which accelerated with the advent of social media.
Judge Codd said it is important that 'in a democracy, free speech and freedom of press must be rightly defended' and an aggravating feature of the case was the targeting of female journalists with 'threats of a highly graphic nature'.
The judge said general deterrence was necessary and that the 'message goes out' that there are criminal laws which can and will be enforced.
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She said it was aggravating that McAnaw harassed the women in the context of their work, which potentially impacted their constitutional rights to earn a living and bodily integrity.
Judge Codd said the court also had to consider the issue of protection of the public, given McAnaw's history of violent offending, the evidence of his failure to follow medical advice and his consumption of illicit substances, including cannabis.
The judge said the need to protect the public 'can't be an end in itself', adding that preventative detention is not permitted by law in Ireland.
But Judge Codd said the protection of society was a factor alongside other sentencing principles that the court could have regard to when constructing a proportionate sentence. She added that the fact that 'an offender is a danger to public, which is borne out by evidence, can justify a sentence towards the higher end of the scale'.
The judge noted McAnaw's mental health difficulties and that he declines to take anti-psychotic medication 'reserved for most serious cases of schizophrenia'. The judge said McAnaw also has a history of substance misuse and inconsistent past engagement with community mental health services.
The judge said McAnaw is assessed at high risk of violent and sexual re-offending. She said the court would give no discount on the headline sentence for his mental health issues, as he had contributed to them by declining to follow medical advice and by taking illicit substances.
Judge Codd said the escalating nature of the messages sent was aggravating and, in relation to Ms Reynolds, these included a threat to kill. The judge said while the offences occurred over a short period of time, this had less weight due to McAnaw's status as a violent offender, which would have exacerbated the concern felt by the injured parties.
Judge Codd noted the mitigation including McAnaw's guilty pleas and his background.
She outlined a global sentence of 11 years, with the final 12 months to be suspended on strict conditions for five years.
These included that McAnaw remain under probation supervision for five years, comply with his medical regime, refrain from the use of illicit substances and make available any internet-enabled devices when requested by gardai.
The judge backdated the sentence to August 2023, when McAnaw went into custody.
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Ms Brunker and Ms Reynolds were both present in court when the sentence was imposed.
Probation and forensic psychological reports were handed to the court. Ms Smith told the court her client does not accept the diagnosis of a mental illness and has remained drug-free since entering the CMH in October 2023.
Judge Codd commended the three women for their resilience and courage throughout the process and wished them well for the future.
She directed McAnaw to appear at a sitting of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court later this month in relation to the breach of conditions imposed as part of a suspended sentence.