A businessman who carried out secret surveillance on his wife for years because he suspected she was having an affair with his business partner was jailed for 16 months yesterday.
Car dealer Scott Ennis stalked his wife by setting up spy cameras and paying one of his employees to track and report her movements for more than four years.
Sheriff William Wood said: "Your actions were despicable. There is no other way to describe it. The fact it was carried out over four and a half years is indicative of you being contemptuous of your wife's health and privacy throughout that period.
"You have caused Louisa Ennis considerable distress. She has been significantly affected. She required counselling. At no time did you front up.
"Even when you were confronted with the discovery of the camera in the bedroom you denied you were spying on her - but that wasn't enough.
"You continued to stalk her, continued to keep her under covert surveillance and paid others to carry out surveillance on her.
"You were gaslighting her, moving garage doors and bins around in the garden.
"Your actions constituted a substantial intrusion and invasion of her privacy, both within and outwith your marriage. You were significantly determined to carry out surveillance regardless of the impact upon her."
Jealous Ennis secretly filmed his wife in the marital bedroom, recorded her work conversations with a hidden microphone and deployed a member of his staff to spy on her.
Louisa Ennis had no idea what was going on until she spotted a mystery device showing up on her wi-fi router and discovered it was her husband's spy camera.
She realised live footage of their bedroom was being streamed from a bedside digital alarm clock her husband had given her as a gift and set up himself.
Ennis was also using mobile phone technology to covertly track his wife's movements as his secret stalking campaign ran from 1 January 2015 until 2 August 2019.
Perth Sheriff Court was told that Ennis repeatedly sent one of his employees to follow his wife and take photos and videos of her without her knowledge.
The court was told that Ennis, who had financial difficulties with his used car business Roundal Group, suspected she was cheating on him with his partner David Welsh.
Fiscal depute Gail Russell told the court that the marriage was failing and that Mrs Ennis did start a new relationship with Mr Welsh in 2019, after leaving her husband.
She said employee Adam Horton had come forward to admit the part he had played in the spying campaign because he was ashamed of what he had agreed to do for Ennis.
Ennis, 50, of Auchterarder, admitted engaging in a course of conduct which caused fear and alarm in various locations across Perth and Kinross between January 2015 and August 2019.
He admitted installing a covert camera and a microphone recording device to secretly watch and listen to his wife's movements and conversations without her knowledge.
He admitted tracking her using iPhone technology, moving items in her garden, and getting his employee to walk past her home to record her in the company of Mr Welsh.
Mrs Russell told the court: "He was the owner of Roundal Car Dealership in Tullibardine. He had struggled with money at some point.
"She was employed as a bookkeeper with Roundal. David Welsh was also employed there.
"Louisa Innes and the accused started their relationship in 2005 and were married in 2009. They have two children together.
"The decline of the relationship began in 2015. She decided the marriage was over in 2017 and asked him to leave in 2018.
"They were still together and sharing a bedroom when he gave her a digital arm clock as a gift. He set it up and positioned it facing the bed.
"It stayed there until she moved out. In May 2018 she moved with the children. He again set up the digital clock in the bedroom.
"She accessed the router and saw a device she didn't recognise. This took her to a live feed from the digital clock which had a camera within it.
"It was a livestream of the bed. She had a WhatsApp conversation with the accused and confronted him."
She said Mr Welsh spotted the box for the clock in the office and he quit his job, while Mrs Ennis then noticed the bins had been moved within her garden.
Checks showed that Ennis was parked nearby and on other occasions it was apparent he was driving a short distance behind her on a quiet country road near her home.
The court heard how he pressed Mr Horton into finding out where Mr Welsh was living after it became apparent he was involved in a relationship with Mrs Ennis in 2019.
Police were called in and a search of Ennis's internet history showed he had been carrying out research on bugging devices, iPhone software and covert spying equipment.
When he was quizzed by officers, Ennis said: "I believed my wife to be cheating on me with my ex-business partner."
The court heard Ennis left the company in 2019.
Solicitor Ryan Sloan, defending, said: "He was a man at an extremely low ebb. He is ashamed. He was clearly a man struggling to cope with the gradual decline of his marriage."
He told the court Ennis had also run holiday lettings but was now unemployed.
A nine month non-harassment order was also imposed.
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