MAN JAILED FOR THREE-YEAR STALKING CAMPAIGN TARGETING WOMAN IN MANSFIELD
A woman was left in a constant state of fear and terror 24 hours a day after she was stalked by David Richardson, 44, on buses, at her workplace, and in public.Richardson tracked her movements for nearly three years despite being under a lifelong restraining order which banned him from making contact with her.
His campaign of harassment included thousands of phone calls, texts, and sending explicit videos.
Richardson would make persistent calls, sometimes from unknown numbers, and when the woman blocked her unknown caller, the calls continued from different numbers.
He delivered threats and derogatory noises over the phone, calling her rude names, and warning: "You will be dead.
You will need the full East Midlands police force.
I am going to knock on your door today and make sure you are dead." He stalked her in person by attending locations she was known to be, including standing outside her home and on buses, staring, waving, and sniggering.
On one occasion, her belongings fell onto the street when she disembarked from a bus, and later she received a text message from him asking, "Did you have fun picking up your stuff?" Her victim impact statement revealed her desperate state of constant fear.
In court, her legal representative described her ordeal, and Richardson’s behavior was described as tormenting and distressing.
Judge Stuart Rafferty KC branded Richardson "a menace" and suggested he likely enjoyed causing her misery, saying "I don't have the slightest doubt every day, even now, you were thinking about that woman and what you would be doing to her." Richardson, who pleaded guilty, was sentenced to four years in prison for stalking and an additional two years concurrently for breaching the restraining order, which remains in place for life.
It was noted that he would need to serve two-thirds of his sentence before being eligible for parole and will be on extended license for two years after his release.
The court considered him a danger of causing serious harm due to his behavior, which they described as "the worst of its kind."
