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A man was sentenced to six weeks in prison yesterday after a prolonged period of harassing and assaulting his former partner - but he left the court a free man having already served his time inside on remand.
Anthony Dunn, 35, was sentenced in the Magistrate's Court for his actions between 15 August 2021 and 8 January 2022.
Dunn pleaded guilty to entering his ex-partner’s home without permission, entering her garden without permission, snapping her phone in half whilst in her home and creating fake social media profiles in an effort to contact her.
The investigation into his behaviour also uncovered an incident during the relationship in which Dunn grabbed his victim’s neck, pushed her to the floor and kicked her several times. This led to a charge of assault.
Pictured: Dunn was represented by Advocate Liam Roffey, who said his client needed to take responsibility for his actions.
The relationship ended on 15 August 2021. The harassment charge related to events from that point onwards.
On 17 August, Dunn entered the victim’s house and slashed a pool in her garden which he had bought as a gift.
On another date, he turned up at her house drunk, took her phone and snapped it in half.
His partner had blocked Dunn's personal accounts on social media. Undeterred, he used fake social media profiles in an attempt to contact her against her wishes.
On 26 October, Dunn turned up at her house drunk. The police were called to move him on.
The next day, he simply entered her house while she was not there. This incident prompted the victim to report Dunn for harassment.
Pictured: Yesterday's court case was heard on the same day Express reported on a consistent increase in domestic abuse incidents in the island - LINK.
In a police interview, Dunn blamed his victim, arguing that she was in fact controlling him.
He admitted drinking six to seven pints of lager every day, but denied having a problem with alcohol.
The police issued Dunn with a harassment notice, but this failed to stop him from continuing to harass his ex-partner.
On 29 December, he went to her house again and tried to get inside. The police were called and moved him on again.
The New Year brought Dunn's victim no respite.
At 01:50 on the morning of 7 January, she was getting ready to go to bed when Dunn entered the house again. He tried to check her phone, which she tried to resist, and they fell to the floor. The police were called and Dunn was arrested.
He was released on bail with the condition not to contact the victim. He took no notice of the condition and tried to contact her anyway. He was remanded in custody on 13 January.
Pictured: Dunn avoided further time in Les Nicolles having been held on remand since 13 January.
In Dunn’s defence, Advocate Liam Roffey said the case was one person’s word against the other and that the pair's relationship was “marred by jealousy”.
Advocate Roffey also said: “Mr Dunn needs to take responsibility for his wrongdoing."
Judge Graeme McKerrell took a dim view of the story laid out in front of him.
“It’s perfectly clear that you suffer from an inherent need to victim blame,” he said.
“You are a classic domestic abuser.”
Dunn was given an 18-month probation order and a five-year restraining order.
He was also sentenced to six weeks in Les Nicolles, but because he had already served that time on remand he was free to leave.
Domestic abuse cases increasing
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