An interim injunction has been granted against a far-right councillor restraining him from filming and besetting the home of the head of debt firm Pepper Finance Corporation (Ireland) Ltd DAC.
The High Court injunctions against Independent Dublin city councillor Gavin Pepper (who has no connection to Pepper Finance) also restrain such activity against members of Ian Wigglesworth’s family. The managing director has five children, including one with Down syndrome, who was visibly upset after being recently filmed playing outside his home.
The injunctions also prohibit Mr Pepper from obstructing, harassing, threatening, pursuing or intimidating Mr Wigglesworth and his family, who live in a Dublin housing estate.
Cllr Pepper, of Plunkett Green, Finglas, Dublin, must also remove social media posts which contain video footage taken outside Mr Wigglesworth’s home.
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Brian Conroy SC, for Mr Wigglesworth and Pepper Finance, said Cllr Pepper has a well established association with the far right and social media posts promoting far-right ideas.
This injunction application, brought on a one-side-only represented (ex parte) basis, was urgent in the context of recent events, he said, adding that his clients were concerned about the possibility of such events becoming more serious.
Mr Wigglesworth, in a sworn statement, said Cllr Pepper has engaged in a series of threats and acts of intimidation against him and Pepper Finance.
On July 25th, he arrived at Mr Wigglesworth’s family home, set up a video camera with tripod and began filming his family, including his son with Down syndrome.
It was particularly distressing that Cllr Pepper sought to disparage his son in a recent social media post which was published on X, Facebook and Instagram, he said.
A second defendant in the case is David Rafferty, of Plunkett Green in Finglas, Dublin, who holds a mortgage account with Pepper Finance.He has admitted to disseminating personal information about Mr Wigglesworth, including his address.
He is sued arising from the sequence of events that followed but there was no application for an injunction against him.
Cllr Pepper has published a total of 14 social media posts in relation to Mr Wigglesworth and his company. The posts are offensive, defamatory, threatening and replete with misinformation, Mr Wigglesworth said.
In Cllr Pepper’s first post on June 12th, he signalled his intention to attend the homes of named people.
On July 25th, he threatened to camp outside Mr Wigglesworth’s home if he didn’t “come to the table” in relation to the interest rates Pepper Finance charges.
In commentary with his posts, Cllr Pepper said he had “all the information about the staff” at Pepper Finance and another company. This prompted threatening comments from other social media posts.
Mr Justice Brian Cregan also ordered Cllr Pepper be restrained from publishing the staff’s addresses.
He said he would deal with the issue of extending the injunctions to Pepper Finance itself when the case returns on Thursday.
