Man avoids jail over anti-semitic emails to Shatter

A council worker who sent former justice minister Alan Shatter a litany of vile anti-semitic emails has been been sentenced to 100 hours of community service.

Dublin District Court heard Mr Shatter was upset over persistent emails calling him a “perfidious Jew” and “Yiddish whore”.

John Dillon, aged 55, of Whitethorn Gardens, Palmerstown, Dublin, was suffering from depression and “went over the edge” after a long-term relationship ended, and he began to act “quite manic”, Judge Anthony Halpin heard.

The council worker pleaded guilty earlier at Dublin District Court to harassment of Mr Shatter from February until April 8, 2014.

His case had been adjourned until yesterday when a probation report was furnished to Judge Halpin who ordered community service work in lieu of a six-month jail sentence.

Judge Halpin read out extracts from the emails, saying that “the public should be given a flavour of these emails”.

The email on March 3, 2014, to Mr Shatter stated: “Resign you Jewish, Rathgar, circumcised prick.”

The one he received on April 8 last year said: “Fuck off back to the West Bank Zionist asshole.”

Oisin Clarke, defending, pleaded for leniency and had furnished the court with reference from Dillon’s workplace superior and Judge Halpin had agreed it was at “polar variance” to the emails he had sent.