JAILING OF OXFORD BUS COMPANY STALKER WELCOMED BY POLICE
Police officials have called on victims to report any violations of restraining orders by their stalkers.This statement follows praise from Oxfordshire’s stalking coordinator for the recent 28-month imprisonment of a persistent offender who attracted attention on national media for her repeated offenses.
According to last week’s report in the Oxford Mail, Charlie Howells disregarded multiple court orders, resulting in her sentencing at Oxford’s crown court by Judge Ian Pringle KC earlier this month.
This marked her 12th violation of a restraining order, which took place shortly after her release from custody for similar breaches.
The 29-year-old targeted a female bus company executive through threatening Facebook messages, demonstrating her obsession by waiting at bus stops across the county.
Howells, who has no fixed residence, was sentenced to a total of two years and four months for breaching a stalking prevention order.
She also admitted to violating an interim stalking protection order, and a full stalking order had previously been issued against her by a magistrates’ court district judge.
Thames Valley Police’s stalking coordinator, DS Helen Steward, reinforced the importance of victim reports, saying: “I would like to commend the victim for coming forward.
“We would always advise victims to report if an offender is breaching a restraining order so we can take appropriate action to bring these matters before the courts, as the victim did in this case.” She added, “We worked tirelessly to ensure Howells was convicted, remanded into custody and a stalking protection order was obtained.
“The stalking protection order will ensure that following her release, Howells will be stringently managed to protect the victims.”
