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This is the moment a dangerous thug punched a £7.8 million painting to bits to “get back at the State”.

Monet moron Andrew Shannon claimed he was feeling faint when he crashed into the 140-year-old masterpiece at the National Gallery.

But images from the incident on June 29 2012 capture the moment hate-filled Shannon attacked the painting, and later pretended he collapsed into the Argenteuil Basin with a Single Sail Boat masterpiece at the National Gallery.

His lie was exposed and he was jailed for five years on Thursday after a jury took less than 90 minutes to find him guilty.

After watching the footage the jury of seven men and five women saw through the 49-year-old’s deception and found him guilty.

Judge Martin Nolan jailed the thug, who has 48 previous convictions, for six years and suspended the final 15 months on strict conditions, including that he not enter a gallery or any other public institution where paintings are displayed.

The Irish Mirror reports that Shannon was carrying a can of paint stripper with him at the time of attack, and had stopped and looked at the iconic Taking of Christ by Caravaggio before thumping the Monet.

Although he never admitted it, police suspect Shannon attacked the painting in a “bid to get back at the State”.

The well-educated thug is believed to be spending his time in jail giving legal advice to lags.

The chilling clips show Shannon strolling into the National Gallery shortly before 11am in June 2012.

In one still image Shannon, who is originally from Ballymun, is seen on camera walking past and looking at Caravaggio’s Taking of Christ – one of the most valuable and famous paintings in the State.

Sergeant Conor O’Braonain told prosecutor Kerida Naidoo that Shannon had gone to where the painting was on display.

He left and returned a short time later and appeared to fall forward striking the painting.

The point of impact was above eye level and to the left hand side of the painting.

Shannon said he had been dizzy and had fallen forward.

He had spoken to a number of people, including two tourists from New Zealand and security staff, at the scene telling them he had a heart condition.

The Irish Mirror has learned the thug told one of the tourists, “Get the f**k off me, I need to get out of here”.

Our images show that after the attack Shannon sat on a bench and later lay down.

(Image: SWNS)

He was treated by a paramedic who reported his vitals were normal and he was given GTN spray and aspirin.

During interviews he told police he had a heart condition and that’s why he had fallen down.

However, when prosecutors later asked for his medical records he refused to hand them over.

Officers initially believed Shannon but witnesses soon came forward to give evidence that it was no accident.

Consultant surgeon Nicholas Walcot gave evidence that in July 2013 Mr Shannon underwent a quadruple heart bypass and that he had 90% blockage in three vessels of the heart, with one completely blocked.

Mr Walcot had agreed with Mr Naidoo that he would expect only 1% of people with Shannon’s heart condition to have dizzy spells and that if he fell down he would have expected him to stay down rather than get up.

Shannon has spent much of the last two years in custody but was on bail when he was arrested and charged with damaging two paintings at the Shelbourne Hotel on January 8, 2014.

This week Judge Nolan directed the jury to find Shannon not guilty of damaging two paintings.

The Irish Mirror can also reveal Shannon was investigated after he attempted to get a Dublin auction house to flog valuable dishware that had been stolen in the UK while on bail.

And last April police seized more than 48 valuable artworks, books and antiques from his home in Ongar, West Dublin.

The paintings, worth over €100,000, include works by William Ashford, Brian Ballard and Mick O’Dea.

Six of the items were identified as having been stolen in Carlow, Dublin, Belfast and Yorkshire in England – with some of the paintings snatched as far back as the 1980s and 1990s.

A senior source explained: “Shannon was a big threat to society. He has a corrupt perversion of the mind, a complete sociopath.

“He never gave a motive for attacking the Monet but spite played a big part in it. He wanted to get back at the State.

"He would have had the opinion, ‘If I can’t have it then no one else will have it’.”

The court heard this week Shannon has 48 previous convictions in this and other jurisdictions some of which are for burglary and theft offences involving antiques.

He has already served 27 months of his six-year sentence and with remission and suspended portions he will be due for release in just over a year.

The Monet painting is now back on display in the National Gallery following a period of restoration.