Man jailed for threatening to kill female journalists

This article contains references to rape and sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.

By Claire Henry

A convicted rapist who threatened to kill three female Sunday World journalists will be sentenced later this year.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Mark McAnaw (52), previously of Letterkenny, Co Donegal, pleaded guilty to the harassment of Nicola Tallant, Amanda Brunker and Deirdre Reynolds on various dates in August 2023.

He has numerous previous convictions, which include a conviction of raping a foreign student in Donegal in October 2010. He was convicted by a jury in 2012 of orally raping and sexually assaulting the student. He was sentenced to nine years in prison for this offending.

McAnaw also has a 1989 conviction for kidnapping and convictions for assaults causing actual bodily harm from a Londonderry court in 2011.

He also attacked a woman in her home days after they had gone on a date together in April 2018. In this incident, he was armed with a large kitchen knife when he forced his way into a woman’s home.

McAnaw received an eight-year, four-month sentence for this in June 2023, backdated to 2018 when he went into custody. The final 16 months of this sentence was suspended for 16 years, and McAnaw was placed under the supervision of Probation Services.

Detective Sargent John Brady told Kieran Kelly, BL, prosecuting, that he was called to investigate the harassment of three women. Deirdre Reynolds outlined in her garda statement that she was working as the acting editor with the Sunday World when she began to receive emails from McAnaw.

The court heard that the emails varied from wanting to take Ms Reynolds for a drink to wanting “to take me home and take my kit off and wanting to give me a good seeing to”.

The emails became more violent in nature, and he then told her that he was coming to Dublin and wanted “A fucking basic thing like a normal phone call confirming that I can stay at your house”.

The final email to Ms Renolds said: “If you try and lastminute.com me, it will be a life-threatening mistake. I will turn up and put bullets in your nut. What happens to you will be your doing.” McAnaw also referred to being an “IRA Top Boy.”

Det Sgt Brady told the court that McAnaw contacted Nicola Talent, the Sunday World’s Investigations Editor in August 2023. In his first email, he said: “Nicola, I would really love to come and meet you in the office around 4.30 to take you out for drinks and something to eat and then back to your house for some fun.”

The court heard that McAnaw turned up at Independent House, the building where the Sunday World is based. He was not allowed into the building and then emailed Ms Tallant to inform her that he was across the road in a coffee shop.

The third complainant in the case is Amanda Brunker, who worked in TV, radio and for the Sunday World. The court heard McAnaw initially made contact with Ms Brunker in 2017.

In August 2023, he left a public message for her on social media page. Ms Brunker said her “heart sank” and she “felt ill” when she saw his name appear. In the message, he told her that he was just out of prison and made a sexual reference.

Other messages referred to his “criminal connections”. He also said that he would get Nicola Talent to show him where Ms Brunker lived and have sex with them both.

McAnaw was arrested, detained and interviewed. He offered apologies to Ms Reynolds and Ms Tallant but indicated that he would have sex with Ms Brunker with or without her consent.

Ms Reynolds read her victim impact statement to the court. She said: “Before 2023, I had no interaction with him. I felt physically sick when I discovered he was a convicted rapist and had carried out violence against women”.

She said: “To the end of 2023, I suffered what may have been a panic attack and had to go get an ECG.”

Ms Brunker also read her victim impact in which she said: “I live in constant fear that he will find where I live, rape and kill me.”

“Shortly after his release in 2017 for the savage attack on a woman in Buncrana, he started sending me messages.”

“He said he would kill me and take pleasure in doing so.” She told the court: “I have no photo of him, so I can’t warn my family and neighbours.”

Ms Brunker said: “I have seen him in court twice. He is a giant of a man.”

“To this day, my son keeps a hurl beside the front door.”

Ms Tallant’s victim impact statement was read to the court on her behalf, which said: “When he arrived at my office reception, I felt quite sick.”

“He is a convicted rapist, and this made his arrival at my office even more uncomfortable”. She said she had  been comforted by the actions of the gardai and the court services.

Det Sgt Brady agreed with Rebecca Smith, BL, defending, that her client is originally from the UK and came to Ireland 15 years ago. The court heard McAnaw is currently detained in the Central Mental Hospital.

The garda agreed with counsel that at the time of this offending, McAnaw was not taking his medication. He also agreed that when gardai approached McAnaw in the coffee shop across from Independent House, he identified himself and was not aggressive.

The court heard that McAnaw was interviewed on three occasions. He offered apologies to the women but also said that he “would make it up to them in the future”.

Judge Pauline Codd adjourned the case until June 5 to prepare a probation report and obtain an up-to-date psychiatric report.