STALKER JAILED AFTER TRYING TO STOP VICTIM MOVING ON
A man convicted of stalking and harassment, who had vowed to prevent his former partner from establishing new relationships, has been sentenced to prison.Christopher Bayliss, aged 44, residing on Caroline Hart Walk in Cambridge, developed an obsession with his ex-partner after discovering she had started dating again last summer.
He illegally accessed her dating profiles and social media accounts, and his actions intensified when she entered a new relationship.
On November 15, Bayliss visited her home and demanded money.
Although she initially refused, she later transferred £25 in an effort to get him to leave.
The following morning at around 4am, he returned, knocking on her door and threatening to take his own life.
Over a span of just two days, Bayliss sent 92 WhatsApp messages, left 71 voicemails, and made 32 calls that were not answered.
He also contacted the victim's daughter, blaming her mother for his drug use and vowing to prevent her from forming any more relationships to ruin other men.
In one call, Bayliss asked the daughter to hand the phone to her mother, who was then told, “You need to get the dog; I am going to kill myself.” He threatened to ruin her employment, claiming he would contact her employer with false allegations of theft and drug involvement.
He acted on this by emailing her workplace, falsely accusing her of stealing drugs and money laundering.
Between late November and early December, Bayliss sent over 200 messages and made more than 60 calls and voicemails to the victim.
On December 2, he sent a message suggesting he was watching her movements, implying she had been suspended from work because he believed she was still there.
In fact, she had left her home to stay elsewhere out of fear, parking her car out of sight to avoid detection.
Bayliss was taken into custody later that day.
At Cambridge Crown Court on May 14, he received a sentence of two years and seven months in prison after admitting to charges including stalking causing serious alarm or distress, harassment without violence, and blackmail.
A charge related to controlling or coercive behavior within a close relationship, as well as an additional stalking offence, will remain on file.
He was also issued a court order banning him from contacting the victim for ten years.
