Eoin Hannan loses appeal against harassment sentence

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Eoin Hannan lost an appeal against his four-year prison sentence for harassing Ciara Hassett. The proceedings were reported on 7 September 2024.

Hannan, of Abbeyvale, Corbally, Limerick, was convicted of harassing Ms Hassett in April 2022. He had denied the charge.

Judge Séamus Woulfe said Hannan had argued that other offenders received lesser sentences and that he had mistakenly sent romantic-style letters to the wrong woman. Hannan also complained that the offences were non-violent, that a psychiatric report contained a damaging falsehood and that no regard had been given to his bipolar affective disorder.

The judge said Hannan had mistaken Ms Hassett for someone he believed had represented him in court in 2013. He began corresponding with her in 2016 and sent flowers. She thanked him by text, her only communication with him, and hoped that ignoring his conduct would make it stop.

Hannan received Garda warnings in July 2017 and February 2019 after complaints from the family. He later wrote to Ms Hassett, including at her Dublin workplace, and called there. A letter dated 6 August 2020 said, ‘I can kill anything but time’, causing her fear and upset.

After his arrest on 25 August 2020, Hannan made admissions but did not accept that his conduct amounted to the alleged offence. Judge Woulfe said the sentence should stand.