Mansfield stalker left victim 'scared and vulnerable' after suicide threats

A Mansfield man stalked his ex-partner and left her scared and vulnerable after threatening to kill himself and 'take her with him', a court heard.
Mansfield Magistrates CourtMansfield Magistrates Court
Mansfield Magistrates Court

Lee Young was waiting for the woman when she returned to her father’s Ashfield Avenue home on June 2, and said: “I have come to speak to you. You have seen nothing yet. Come here I want a hug.

“I am going to kill myself. I am going to take you with me. I am going to kill myself.”

“The incident left her feeling very anxious,” said prosecutor Judith Kirkham.

Earlier in the day he had texted her to say: “You look like you have been crying.”

“This caused her considerable alarm, thinking he had been observing her,” said Miss Kirkham.

“I am not doing anything to hurt you,” Young told the woman in a text message, later on.

But two days later, Young sent her an email which said: “I am finding it hard to let you go.”

In a victim statement, the woman said: “It has been going on for so long. I feel very vulnerable. I am scared about what he is going to do. I feel very uneasy because he is so unpredictable. I was shaking when I reported it to the police.”

Young, 42, of Dewberry Gardens, Forest Town, admitted stalking the woman, between July 1 and July 4, when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Wednesday.

Miss Kirkham said he had previous convictions for cannabis possession, and had last appeared before the court in Spetember 2015, when he was fined.

They had a “lengthy relationship” after meeting in 2010, but she ended it in May 2016 and moved back in with her family.

“She blocked any contact on her mobile,” said Miss Kirkham. “In November, he contacted her to say he had been to the doctor and was sorting his life out.

“In May this year, he made contact and asked her for help to get a job. She slept with him and he thought they were getting back together. She realised this was a mistake.

“He contacted her to say he had taken an overdose. He was saying he was going to kill himself. He showed her marks he had made on his wrists.

“In mid June she told him to leave her alone. It’s because he continued to make contact that finally she realised she would have to report the matter to the police.”

A probation report said Young’s offences had a significant impact on the victim and he acted out of frustration at the situation.

He admitted using cannabis for 29 years and more recently cocaine as a way of dealing with his emotions.

He has been diagnosed with anxiety and depression. He denied threatening to harm the woman.

Young was told his offence could have landed him in jail.

He was given an 18 month community order, with 30 days of a thinking skills programme and 15 days of a rehabilitation activity.

He was banned from entering Ashfield Avenue and the Wickets, Warsop, and the six month ban will be monitored by an electronic tag.

A two year restraining order was also imposed. He must pay an £85 victim surcharge and £85 court costs.

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