A young woman became too scared to leave her home after a besotted former classmate stalked her ten years after his high school crush.
Danielle McGowan, 24, has been living in fear ever since Daniel Owen, also 24, followed her around a supermarket and posted on social media what items she was buying.
Owen recently admitted the four-month stalking campaign and was banned from contacting the victim, whom he had wrongly believed was his childhood sweetheart at school nearly ten years ago.
Tameside Magistrates Court heard the jobless defendant also loitered outside Miss McGowan's home and posted selfies showing the victim's street in the background last year.
Miss McGowan, who is an office administrator, said: "At the time I felt scared whenever I left my house. He has thrown things at me and shouted at me and he seemed to go everywhere I went because he kept on turning up.
"It was emotionally distressing for a long time and I didn’t like to go out on my own. I had to have my mum with me whenever I went out.
"I used to be quite independent so this was a big change for me. If I wanted to nip to the car for anything I had to get mum to look outside.
"I was scared that he would turn up at work and mum and I ended up moving house earlier then we planned to. I felt I had to hide this from my brother for a long time. I just want the defendant to stop trying to contact me."
Miss McGowan and Owen completed their GCSEs and left school in Oldham, Greater Manchester, in 2012.
They were never in a relationship, the court heard, but Owen became besotted with her nonetheless. He started stalking her last year.
"The complainant in this case knew the defendant from school. She was at school with him for about five years and they left in 2012 - but she was never in a relationship with him," Shazia Aslam, prosecuting, said.
"She said he would follow her around the supermarket whilst laughing at her, he also sent her social media messages and loitered around her home address. On one occasion she was at home and looked out of the bathroom window and he was stood in the street near her car.
"He was there for a couple of minutes staring at her vehicle. He noticed her looking at him and then ran away and as he did so she heard a smash in her back garden. A bottle which he was holding at the time was found smashed in her back garden.
"Since then, her mother told her that the defendant had been in the street quite a few times. On 18th April she was going through her letterbox and found a tin of fish had been posted through it. She looked out of her window and saw him walking away from the address.
"In another incident she was in her car after going to the shops. She says she saw the defendant come running towards her with a green bottle in one hand. He then threw the bottle at the car then ran back in the direction he came from. She was quite scared by this behaviour. At one point she put tape over her post box and she says he doesn’t seem to understand that she wants nothing to with him.
Owen also used social media in his campaign.
Miss Aslam added: "The defendant later tried to follow her on Instagram. In one message she recognises the houses in the background of a picture because it had been taken outside her house. He did this deliberately to try to make her feel unsafe.
"On 27th April she was in Tesco with her mum trying to buy porridge. He took a picture of himself and puts her in the caption. He writes ‘my porridge tastes better then yours. She reported this to police. They have never been in a relationship.
"They spoke in school from time to time when they were between 14 and 16 years old. After she reported matters to police the defendant was interviewed and arrested. He admitted what he did when interviewed. He accepts he followed her Instagram and took a picture outside her home address.
"He said he was angry with her for ending their relationship eight years ago. She denies they were ever in a relationship."
At Tameside magistrates court, jobless Owen admitted stalking without fear between April and August last year and was banned from contacting Miss McGowan for two years under the terms of a restraining order.
In addition to the restraining order, Owen was also made subject of a six-month community order and will have to abide by a six week curfew from 9pm to 7am. He was also ordered to pay £170 in costs and surcharges.
He admitted stalking at the first opportunity.
Lina Tsui-Cheung, defending, said: "He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.
"The pre-sentence report clearly outlined his mental health difficulties. He is not currently in work and is claiming Universal Credit."
