'Cruel' Castleford man threatened to send DVD of intimate videos to his ex's mum

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of his ex partner, refused to accept the relationship was over and sent messages which even his own barrister described as “disgraceful”.

Prosecutor Lauren Smith told Leeds Crown Court that the couple had been in a relationship for around 10 months until April of 2023, but there had been two incidents in which he first pushed the woman into a metal bed frame, and another in which he pushed her to the floor.

The second incident was reported to the police, but no charges followed with the woman refusing to support a prosecution.

She then ended the relationship in April, but the 33-year-old from Castleford continued to email her, asking for another chance. Miss Smith said the messages “became increasingly nasty” and he threatened to tell her mother about their sex life.

He continued to call her but she blocked his number, so he created two new social media accounts to contact her, but she blocked them also. He was also spotted by her colleague waiting outside her place of work.

The defendant then sent messages to her mother describing sexual acts they had tried, and sent her a photo of her daughter’s genitals.

He then told the woman he would send her mother a DVD of the videos he had taken, saying he wanted to show her mother “the real you”. However, he never sent it. He also sent the woman’s new partner a Snapchat message about their sex life.

He was arrested and made “full and frank admissions” to the police. He later admitted three counts of stalking involving alarm or distress, one of disclosing or threatening to disclose private sexual photos and sending malicious communications.

As a result of his actions, the woman was diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), had anxiety and depression and felt “dirty, embarrassed and violated”.

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Mitigating, Harry Bradford said: “He has clear remorse and keen to express to the court how deeply sorry he is for his behaviour.”

He said the defendant was looking for an explanation as to why she ended the relationship and was drinking and taking cannabis at the time.

He added: “He did something cruel and stupid. It was truly disgraceful behaviour, he tells me he can’t apologise enough. He wants to address the root causes of his offending.”

Judge Richard Mansell KC said that defendant would “not take no for an answer” and he became “increasingly nasty”.

He gave the man 12 months’ jail, but opted to suspend it for 18 months, saying he was “just about persuaded” not to send him directly into custody.

The man will also have to complete 20 rehabilitation days and 150 hours of unpaid work. He was also given a restraining order to keep him away from ex for an indefinite length of time.