Naas pervert's victims say it was worth waiving anonymity to see 'look on his face'

Anthony Dunne (61), from Hazelmere, Naas, Co Kildare, was shocked when he received a 12-month custodial sentence for setting up cameras to record his partner's daughter-in-law and a woman he had worked with for 20 years.

Dunne's victims, who waived their right to anonymity so Dunne could be exposed, said he was so confident that he would be walking out of court with a suspended sentence he drove himself to court and hadn't brought a bag with him for prison.

He was sentenced to 12 months for secretly recording Leanne Daly showering at her mother-in-law's house in Clondalkin in 2020, and four months for secretly recording his colleague Paula Jordan, who he had known for years, by setting up a hidden camera in the shower at O'Neill's Factory, Long Mile Road, Walkinstown, Dublin, on March 23 last year.

The two terms will run concurrently.

Dunne was in a relationship with Leanne's mother-in-law until he was exposed. Leanne had known him for 13 years and saw him as a trusted member of the extended family. She previously told the Sunday World how she couldn't get her head around how Dunne was able to record her in the shower and look at the videos before sitting down across the table from her as though nothing had happened.

She said she was delighted that Dunne got a custodial sentence and believes he wasn't expecting it.

"There was no family with him. He was on his own," said Leanne.

"I'm glad now that it's a harsh reality for him to realise. I'm convinced he thought he was getting away with it. To see the look on his face was worth it."

Paula was also delighted with the custodial sentence and said Dunne looked shocked to be going to prison.

"He just had his head down and my husband said 'watch the guards taking him out'. His barrister went over to him and took his phone and wallet off him. His hands were shaking and then he stumbled against the wall when the guards were bringing him out the side door.

"He was shaking. He had no bag with him or anything and had his car keys."

Both Paula and Leanne praised Judge Orla Crowe, who handed down sentencing and they said she understood the gravity of what Dunne had done to them.

In a letter of apology Dunne claimed what he did was a moment of madness but Judge Crowe said there was a considerable amount of premeditation involved.

Dunne was captured on CCTV watching Paula in work to see her going out for a jog on the day he set up the camera in work.

"He was stalking me," Paula said. "It was clearly not a moment of madness."

Leanne agreed. "She was a great judge, credit to her. She seen through all of his lies and pretence.

"If it was a moment of madness he would have done it once and never done it again. He did it to me for three months solid and repeated it a year later. That's only half of the lies he told."

She said that Dunne will have plenty of time to think about his so-called moment of madness behind bars for the next few months.

"I hope that moment of madness was worth it."

Dunne was rumbled in March last year when Paula had taken a shower in work and afterwards lost her balance and knocked over boxes while getting changed.

After knocking the boxes she discovered a phone with a camera connected to it had been recording her showering, and later found an email linked to Dunne logged in on the phone.

Dunne resigned on the spot after admitting he placed the camera there and Paula kept the camera and contacted gardai a few days later.

Analysis of the phone later revealed he had also recorded Leanne.

While Dunne offered a written apology to court, Leanne and Paula feel it was a self-serving apology.

"The only thing he is sorry for is that he got caught, nothing else," said Leanne.

"It was all worth it. When I look back it was worth all the nerves and anxiety because we got something good at the end of it."