Convicted burglar and brothel boss working as private investigator
Man suspected of raid on home of ex-tánaiste McDowell
MEET the most recent addition to Ireland’s private investigations sector: a burglar and brothel keeper who was caught hiding in an ex-taoiseach’s garden.
Aidan Dorney, 43, was also suspected of breaking into former tánaiste Michael McDowell’s home more than 10 years ago, as well as being caught trespassing in the garden of ex-taoiseach Albert Reynolds.
He had recently been released after a three-year prison sentence for keeping brothels when he set up City Investigations last year.
And today the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal that Dorney, who has a string of convictions, is still listed as the registered owner of a number of escort agencies.
Business names registered to him include Escortsireland, Irishescorts, Private-Detective, NIEscorts, Irish Independent Companions and Irish Independent Escorts.
The revelation will add to concerns about the private investigator sector after recent prosecutions over private records being illegally accessed by investigators hired by credit unions. There is no suggestion Dorney’s firm was involved in illegal searches for data on credit union customers.
The Irish League of Credit Unions is calling for more regulations in the private investigator sector. It said: ‘This is something that the Government needs to urgently address.’
There are now moves to have private investigators licensed and vetted by a State watchdog.
The Private Security Authority has proposed three different regulatory models that would involve private investigators who break the law having licences rescinded.
City Investigations boasts on its website that it can ‘promise professionalism, confidentiality and honesty at every turn’. It also claims it specialises in ‘domestic burglary prevention advice’.
Dorney has convictions for bur- glary and trespassing. He was caught in the garden of ex-taoiseach Albert Reynolds’s Dublin home. After his arrest for trespass, gardaí received complaints from two other houses in the area and he was convicted of burglary in 2003.
Over 10 years ago, he was suspected of being the ‘local baddie’ that Michael McDowell referred to when he spoke on radio after a number of break-ins at his home.
When contacted by the MoS this week, Dorney refused to comment on new proposals to vet private investigators. He now lives in an apartment in Clonskeagh after selling a home in Ranelagh. At the time, a judge ordered him to donate €5,000 to Ruhama, a charity that supports prostitutes.
Asked if he was involved in the McDowell burglaries at the time, Dorney said: ‘The gardaí are say- ing that about me? That’s gas. I used to do a bit of that but I’ve not been involved in it for years.’
He added: ‘I’m not going to comment, not at this stage.’
Meanwhile, a source said: ‘The gardaí were aware 10 years ago that Dorney was claiming to be a private investigator. He is a serial burglar and people should be aware of that.’