‘Obsessed’ stalker sent victim £10k in bid to stay in touch
GRAEME CLARK IS SENT TO PRISON AFTER CAMPAIGN OF HARASSMENT
A STALKER who gave his victim £10,000 in a bid to make her stay in contact with him has been jailed.
Graeme Clark also created several fake social media profiles over two years to prevent the victim escaping his clutches.
The 43-year-old from Willow Green, Needingworth, became infatuated with the victim after meeting her through her work in Preston, Lancashire, in August 2021.
They became friends and started texting every day, with the victim also travelling to see him in Cambridgeshire.
A couple of months later, the victim became wary of Clark after he told her he had become ‘obsessed’ with her and she decided to stop seeing him.
She blocked him on WhatsApp, with Clark calling shortly afterwards to say he had transferred £10,000 into her bank account.
The shocked victim spent half an hour on the phone telling him she could not accept the money, but he rejected her pleas to take it back.
The victim said the money did not change things, although he tried to persuade her to stay in contact.
Several weeks later Clark sent her a message on Facebook stating he was at a hotel in Preston, and wanted her to visit him.
The victim realised that the hotel was near her home, despite her never giving him her address.
Clark continued to bombard her with messages and after a month she blocked him on all her social media accounts. He continued to message her every day from fake accounts, which escalated to messaging her family and friends saying he was worried about her.
In February last year, Clark sent a message to the victim’s Instagram account telling her to “be more careful on social media” and posted a Google image of her home.
The following day she told him again to leave her alone, and Clark said he would, “for good”.
Just days later she received a friend request with a profile picture of her gym, making her anxious he would show up there.
In March last year, Clark continued to bombard the victim under a new username of “you know me”, with one message demanding she give him back the £10,000 he had given her two years previously.
Two months later, the stalking continued, so the victim reported him to the police and he was arrested.
In police interview, Clark admitted messaging the victim’s family and friends to “check on her welfare” and apologised for leaving the victim feeling harassed.
Clark pleaded guilty to stalking involving serious alarm/distress at Huntingdon Law Courts last Tuesday (July 23).
He was handed a prison sentence of two years and four months and a restraining order.
DC Lee Hurley said: “This awful experience left the victim feeling in genuine fear – every time she saw a car like his it caused her to panic.
“She constantly questioned herself and it made her feel paranoid.
“Stalking is a horrendous crime, and I would like to thank the victim for her courage and bravery in reporting this to the police.
“I hope this sentencing provides her with some sort of closure.”
For information about stalking, including advice, go to: cambs.police. uk/advice/advice-and-information/ sh/stalking-harassment/