‘Lovesick’ man dog-napped woman’s pet as part of harassment campaign

A ‘lovesick’ east Clare man ‘dog-napped’ a little terrier called Red as part of a campaign of harassment that made a single mother’s life hell, a court has heard.

At Ennis Circuit Court, 61-year-old Francis Ryan of Shantraud, Killaloe, pleaded guilty to harassing the woman half his age over a one-month period from December 3, 2014, to January 5, 2015.

The 29-year-old woman had arrived in east Clare from the UK with her daughter leaving domestic abuse behind looking for the simple life and lived without TV or internet.