MAN JAILED FOR STALKING FOUR WOMEN IN BRISTOL
A 30-year-old man from Bristol, Piersaverio Finizio, has received a one-year prison sentence after being convicted of stalking four women, an act that has left them feeling unsafe in their own community.Finizio, residing on St Nicholas Road in St Pauls, was found guilty at Bristol Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, 19 November, of four counts of causing serious distress through stalking behavior.
He had previously pleaded not guilty, but the court convicted him after a trial.
In addition to his prison term, Finizio was issued restraining orders prohibiting him from contacting the victims for the next five years.
He was also placed under a Stalking Prevention Order designed to regulate his conduct once he is released.
Throughout the investigation, all four women were provided with support and safeguarding resources.
They described being approached by Finizio on multiple occasions in areas including Newfoundland Way, Bond Street, and Wade Street earlier this year.
One early February incident involved Finizio making comments to a woman, telling her three times, ‘you look lonely, I want to be your valentine’.
She escaped from Newfoundland Way while being followed and called a taxi to get home.
In a separate incident in March, Finizio approached another woman on Bond Street, offering to accompany her to her destination before telling her, ‘you will be an angel soon’.
This made her uneasy, and he repeatedly asked for her phone number.
A week later, on Newfoundland Way, another woman was approached by Finizio who complimented her before requesting her contact information.
The following month, he approached her again, held her arm, but she managed to pull away and escape.
He later approached a fourth woman, repeatedly asking for her phone number and blocking her attempts to walk away.
Eventually, she gave him her number, after which he called her twice and sent her a message within a short span.
Finizio’s arrest was facilitated by his mobile phone number, provided by the victims, which led authorities to identify him.
In a statement read out in court, one victim said: “This case has had a significant impact on my daily life and sense of safety.
“I no longer feel comfortable or at ease when leaving my home, especially in the area where I live.
I am constantly on edge and am worried about being followed or approached, which has left me feeling unsafe in my own community.
“The fear and anxiety I experience have been so overwhelming.” Another victim, who also provided a statement which was read in court, said: “Since it happened, I haven’t known peace.
I’m anxious all the time.
I flinch at footsteps or when someone walks too close.
I scan faces in crowds, always expecting to see him again.
“That first time, he said, ‘it must be scary being a girl at night’.
That sentence broke something in me.
It wasn’t just cruel, it was deliberate.
He knew what he was doing.”
