Woman arrested over six-year poison pen campaign against Loughrea couple
A woman in her 40s was arrested in Galway on 1 October 2026 on suspicion of sending more than 500 anonymous harassing letters to David and Susan Plower of Loughrea, Co Galway, over a six-year period from January 2020. The letters carried the recurring taunt 'Catch us if you can' and included details of the couple's movements, vehicle registration plates, and a hospital appointment described in a letter sent to Susan Plower's workplace. The suspect, who is known to the Plower family, was detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in the Northwestern Region, and detectives seized phones and computers for analysis. Sources said she was expected to be released without charge pending the preparation of a file for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrested2 Oct
3 reports - Charged
- In court
- Verdict
- Sentenced
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- A woman in her 40s was arrested on suspicion of sending more than 500 anonymous harassing letters to David and Susan Plower over a six-year period.
- The letters contained the recurring taunt 'Catch us if you can' and included details of the couple's movements, vehicle registration plates, and a hospital appointment described in a letter sent to Susan Plower's workplace.
- One letter falsely claimed the Plowers' teenage son was involved in drugs while he was preparing for his Leaving Cert.
- Where
- The alleged harassment took place in Loughrea, rural Co Galway.
- When
- The alleged harassment ran from January 2020 to October 2026, and the arrest was made on 1 October 2026.
- Investigation
- The woman was detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in the Northwestern Region, and a search was carried out during which phones and computers were seized for analysis.
- The investigation has been ongoing since January 2020 when the Plowers first contacted gardaí after receiving harassing letters.
- Charges
- The alleged offences are contrary to the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997.
- Other details
- The suspect woman is known to the Plower family, though it is unclear how well they know her.
- Sources expected the woman to be released without charge pending the preparation of a file for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
31 statements extracted from the articles
- whatA woman was arrested as part of an investigation into alleged harassment over a six-year period (irishmirror.ie)
- whatA woman in her 40s was arrested in Galway on Thursday 1 October 2026 as part of an investigation into a near seven-year harassment campaign. (irishtimes.com)
- whatHundreds of harassing letters were received over the course of the campaign. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe letters contained accurate references to the couple's movements, suggesting they were being stalked or closely monitored. (irishtimes.com)
- whatOne letter falsely claimed the Plowers' son was involved in drugs while he was a teenager preparing for his Leaving Cert. (irishtimes.com)
- whatA woman was arrested on suspicion of a six-year poison pen campaign against a couple. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe woman is suspected of sending more than 500 anonymous hate-filled letters since January 2020. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe general taunt in nearly every letter was 'Catch us if you can'. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe letters included registration plates of family vehicles and visitors, and described the family's comings and goings from their east Galway home. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatA letter sent to Susan's workplace described a hospital appointment she had attended with the time and day. (irishmirror.ie)
- whereThe alleged harassment took place in Co Galway (irishmirror.ie)
- whereThe victim family lives in Loughrea, rural Co Galway. (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe woman was arrested in Co Galway. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe alleged harassment took place between January 2020 and October 2026 (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe arrest was made on Thursday, 1 October 2026 (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe investigation has been ongoing since January 2020 when the Plowers first contacted gardaí after receiving harassing letters. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationThe woman is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in the Garda Northwestern Region (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationGardaí did not provide details of the harassment (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationGardaí confirmed investigations are ongoing (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationShe was held under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, allowing questioning for up to 24 hours without charge. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationA search was carried out on Thursday and a number of items were taken for examination by gardaí. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationDetectives seized phones and computers for analysis. (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationThe woman was detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in the Northwestern Region. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeThe alleged offences are contrary to the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeThe woman was detained on suspicion of offences contrary to the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeThe woman was arrested for alleged offences under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe Garda investigation covered ongoing harassment in County Galway between January 2020 and October 2026. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe suspect woman is known to the Plower family, though it is unclear how well they know her. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe woman is in her 40s. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherSources expected her to be released without charge pending a DPP file. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe couple spoke to Newstalk in March 2024 about their ordeal. (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 2 Oct2026Woman arrested over alleged six-year poison pen campaign against innocent couple
Initial report of the arrest. Includes background from a March 2024 Newstalk interview in which the couple described the letters, the taunt 'Catch us if you can', and details of surveillance such as registration plates and a hospital appointment described in a letter sent to Susan's workplace.
victim, female, irish (judged from name)victim, David Plower, male, irish (judged from name)David Plowersuspect, 40s, female - 2 Oct2026Seven-year campaign against Galway family leads to first arrest as woman (40s) detained
First arrest in a near seven-year investigation into a harassment campaign against the Plower family in Loughrea, Co Galway. The suspect was detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act and a search was carried out.
victim, David Plower, male, irish (judged from name)David Plowervictim, Susan Plower, female, irish (judged from name)Susan Plowersuspect, 40s, female - 2 Oct2026Woman arrested over investigation into alleged six-year harassment campaign
Confirms the arrest was made on Thursday 1 October by investigating Gardaí in the Galway Division, that the woman is detained at a Garda station in the Garda Northwestern Region, and that Gardaí did not provide details of the harassment.
suspect, 40s, female