OBSESSED STALKER RECEIVES SUSPENDED SENTENCE FOR BLOOD-SOAKED NOTE AND ASSAULT

An obsessive stalker named Mark Kavanagh, residing in Wrexham, has escaped immediate jail time despite a series of alarming and violent acts against his victim. Court proceedings revealed Kavanagh's disturbing behaviour which began in September 2023 when he started renting a room in Chester where the victim lived. Over time, his obsession deepened, leading to him posting a blood-stained note under her door and sending threatening messages, including ones where he said he would harm himself if she left him.The court heard that on seeing a blood-tinged note, the victim checked on Kavanagh but found him holding a knife and having inflicted injuries upon himself. He later told her, "I did it to test you." His conduct escalated further when he attempted to get the victim arrested by making a false police report. During police arrest, he pulled a knife and tried to bite an officer.Kavanagh appeared in Chester Crown Court, where he was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, for stalking, assaulting an emergency worker, and perverting the course of justice. A restraining order was also issued, forbidding him from contacting the victim.His criminal activities included a failed attempt to frame the victim by uploading intimate images to a pornographic website from an account he created himself shortly before contacting police about the non-existent content, which he later admitted, after initially denying the offences. Furthermore, Kavanagh pleaded guilty to stalking, perverting the course of justice, and assaulting an emergency worker, with overwhelming evidence supporting his guilt.Cheshire detectives, including Detective Constable Ashcroft and Detective Chief Inspector Danielle Knox, emphasized the brutality of Kavanagh’s actions and his attempts to manipulate police reports, which added to the distress caused to the victim. Despite his convictions, he remains under restrictions, with a court-imposed bail condition preventing him from entering Chester or contacting the victim. The investigation highlighted the importance of victims reporting stalking, no matter how uncertain they might feel, and demonstrated that police will pursue offenders relentlessly.