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The Canberra Times
The Canberra Times
Hannah Neale

'Insidious' stalker behind bars after four-year 'campaign of terror'

The victim of an "insidious" stalker has detailed the "campaign of terror" waged against her for four years.

In an impact statement read to the ACT Magistrates Court on Friday, the victim said she wanted to "express the profound distress and lasting impact caused by the relentless stalking and harassment I have endured".

"I would like to emphasise the pervasive and unyielding fear that has plagued me day in and day out," the victim wrote.

Her stalker, John Owen Kirk, 30, has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years behind bars with a 22-month non-parole period.

The diesel mechanic, from rural NSW, had previously pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated stalking and two rolled up counts of contravening a protection order.

Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker labelled Kirk's crimes as "deliberate, manipulative, calculating, persistent and relentless".

The Canberra Times previously revealed Kirk's nearly four-year campaign of harassment, during which he replicated one of the victim's tattoos on his own skin.

Court documents show Kirk met his victim at a mutual friend's birthday party in Kambah in 2019.

The woman's reluctance to exchange phone numbers set off a chain of events that began with Kirk posing as a fictitious ex-boyfriend to abuse her on Snapchat and then sending her a video of himself holding a knife.

John Kirk walks to court carrying his last takeaway coffee before being jailed. Picture by Hannah Neale

He also lay behind a car to prevent her leaving an area, and incessantly sent the woman unwanted gifts that included Swarovski crystal bears and a framed collage featuring the victim.

At another stage, he even approached her at the gym, dropped a bag of gifts at her feet and ran away.

He also sent the victim, and her parents, a deluge of anonymous letters and paid a man known as "tiger" to send them. He transferred this person more than $23,500.

On Friday, the victim described these letters as "being up to 50 pages long" and containing "derogatory and demeaning statements".

"The weight of responsibility and guilt I bear for exposing [my parents] to this torment is overwhelming," she stated.

"Within those envelopes lay a constant reminder of the danger that loomed over our lives ... robbing us of the peace and security we once knew."

John Kirk, right, tries to hide from a reporter on a previous ocassion. Picture by Blake Foden

The content of the letters ranged from Kirk professing his love for the victim and asking permission to marry her, to making threats and trying to intimidate her into dropping a personal protection order against him.

In the week leading up this order lapsing, Kirk posted images on his social media accounts of a countdown to its expiry.

At one point Kirk even moved to a place 900 metres away from the victim's home.

The victim also detailed being bombarded by unwanted phone calls from Kirk which "intruded upon my privacy and invaded my sense of space".

"He would also manipulate others into calling me, enlisting their help in perpetuating his campaign of terror," she said.

This "insidious behaviour" also extended to harassing and intimidating the woman at her workplace, which, the victim stated, hindered her ability to "focus, perform optimally, and progress in my career".

On Friday, the Chief Magistrate found that Kirk did not suffer from mental health issues and had no problem with drug or alcohol which may help explain his "bizarre" crimes.

Ms Walker said Kirk had not shown remorse and "continues to fail to appreciate the significance of his wrongdoing".

Kirk will be eligible for release in November 2025.

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