Man stalked neighbours for years on Queensland island

Laine Clark | August 3, 2023

On a small Queensland island, Ralph Eric Dunsmore tormented his neighbours for years.

He intimidated an elderly couple who lived next door over a five-year period, at one stage threatening to kill them. 

For months he harassed a woman who had to drive past his house to get to her property on Russell Island, off Brisbane.

Even the postie copped his “vile, misogynistic, abusive” conduct, forcing her to change her mail route.

Overall five residents were stalked or had property damaged by Dunsmore on the 8km-long, 3km-wide island.

“There is no real explanation as to why he acted in this way,” crown prosecutor Michael Gawrych said in Brisbane District Court on Thursday.

“There was just some personality trait for which he did not like these people.”

Months after moving in, Dunsmore began stalking his neighbours – a 69-year-old woman and her 70-year-old husband – from June 2016.

“From the outset your conduct was harassing and when police spoke to you, you responded angrily, threatening to kill the complainants,” Judge Jodie Wooldridge said.

Dunsmore took pictures of the wife in her home, sometimes videoing the couple in public.

He shone floodlights or his car headlights into their house and tried to intimidate them while driving his vehicle.

At one stage he stood in the middle of the road when they approached in their car and yelled abuse, telling them they were both “gone” and wanted them to “go away and die somewhere”.

On a number of occasions he poured concrete into their stormwater drains.

When the couple tried to sell their house in 2020, Dunsmore falsely reported to their real estate agent that his neighbours had illegal plumbing.

He also made false complaints about drainage that prompted visits to the neighbours by local council.

“He certainly had grievances against his neighbours and he acted …irrationally and disproportionately,” defence barrister James Feely said.

From March to July 2021 Dunsmore also stalked a 42-year-old woman who drove past his property to get to her house.

The female neighbour had previously taken out a good behaviour order against Dunsmore, the court heard.

“However once the expiration of that order occurred he used his vehicle primarily to intimidate her by following her, driving slowly past and … ‘flipping the bird’,” Mr Gawrych said.

From June to August 2021 he also harassed a 43-year-old Australia Post employee.

He yelled abuse, “telling her she was dead” and used his vehicle to intimidate her.

She eventually changed her route to avoid Dunsmore.

He also deliberately drove into another resident’s car, the court heard.

“He created unnecessary conflict within the community in which he implemented fear of violence towards the complainants,” Mr Gawrych said.

Dunsmore, 61, pleaded guilty to charges including three counts of unlawful stalking with violence.

He was sentenced to two years in jail with immediate release on parole.

Restraining orders were also issued to avoid contact with four complainants.