A sadistic stalker harassed nine women over a six-year period by threatening them over the phone and sending obscene mail telling them that they would meet the same fate as missing women such as Jo Jo Dullard and Deirdre Jacob, a court has heard.
Thomas O'Connor (45), who was curator of the Dublin Civic Museum, posted letters of up to six pages together with pictures of half-naked women with the faces of his various targets superimposed at the top.
He ordered the women to hang their underwear in their windows at a specified date and time and threatened that if they failed to comply he would ruin their lives by stalking them. He also threatened that the same thing could happen to them as had happened to missing women Jo Jo Dullard, Deirdre Jacob, Annie McCarrick and Fiona Pender.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court was told that he also made references to murdered BBC reporter Jill Dando and sent newspaper cuttings with the headline "Theory of Serial Killer Rejected".
He made numerous anonymous phone calls, grunting and groaning, and one of the women reported receiving a letter with faeces on it.
O'Connor, of Rock Road, Booterstown, Co Dublin, pleaded guilty to three counts of sending obscene postal packages, three of harassing women by persistently communicating with them and three of harassing women by continuously watching or besetting them on dates from October 1996 to February 2001.
Judge Yvonne Murphy adjourned sentencing until July 22nd so that Mr Fergal Foley, defending, could ascertain if there were any suitable residential courses available for his client.
Judge Murphy said: "However, I'm not convinced he is a suitable character to let back into the community. It's a very serious matter and I have to consider the terror these women were subjected to and society as a whole."
One of the women told the court that her partner of 10 years had only recently passed away at the time she received the first letter, and it made her fear for her life.
She said: "I was still in mourning for my partner when this started to happen. The letters were so full of hate and viciousness and they were very personal and extremely disgusting. I was very frightened for myself and my little boy. I was living on my own and absolutely terrified. He's just a nasty, bitter little man and I've no idea how anyone could do such a thing."
Det Sgt Colm O'Malley told Ms Mary Ellen Ring, prosecuting, that O'Connor sent the women lewd mail for a number of years, and each letter contained specific references to the woman who received it. He ordered the women to hang underwear in their windows and threatened to wreck their lives if they did not. He knew personal details about each woman and where they were in their house at various times.
Each of the women passed the material mailed to them by O'Connor to gardaí. An investigation was begun in October 1995, and it soon became evident that there was a link between each case.
Det Sgt O'Malley said surveillance operations were set up on the houses of the women, and O'Connor was finally arrested after he was caught stalking the house of one victim who lived in a cul-de-sac. He had co-operated with gardaí and had said that the control he had over the women and the fear he put in them gave him a kick.
He concentrated on single women who were living alone and had obtained their names and addresses from Thom's Directory.
O'Connor had two children, aged six and two, and had recently separated from his wife. He had worked as curator at the Dublin Civic Museum, but was suspended after he was charged.