A man was sentenced to 18 months in prison for harassing his ex-girlfriend, breaking into her house, and threatening to post private photos of her online, reports RTE.
Craig Coyle, 37, of Ballybrack, Co. Dublin’s Holly Court, entered a guilty plea to the charges in November of last year and was given his sentence today.
According to Judge Pauline Codd, he harassed the woman in a number of ways, including sending her a lot of emails that contained sexist and psychological abuse that was motivated by pornography, reports RTE.
According to the court, Coyle and the lady first connected in December 2022 on the dating app Tinder. They started dating but split up in September 2023.
The Garda The victim banned Coyle on a social networking app after he wrote her a rude message, Aaron Bradshaw said at the sentencing hearing, reports RTE.
Then he started saying she owed him money in messages on the Revolut app.
She promised to reimburse him the €200 she owed him, but he messaged her and threatened to share her ex-husband private photos.
He started emailing her after she blocked him on Revolut, reports RTE.
Over the next few months, he wrote her hundreds of demeaning and abusive emails, the court heard.
Additionally, he sent her ex-husband a message with information he said would support him in their legal battle.
He apologised for his actions in a few emails, but a few days later he would send more derogatory emails, reports RTE.
Security cameras caught Coyle looking through the woman’s kitchen window before six in the morning on December 23, 2023.
On January 19, 2024, the same cameras caught him once more.
Also, on Christmas Day 2023, he sent her a really nasty email, reports RTE.
On September 23, 2023, he entered a guilty plea to threatening to publish the woman’s private photos without getting her permission.
Additionally, he said that from September to December 2023, he harassed her on dates.
Additionally, on December 23, 2023, and January 19, 2024, he entered a guilty plea to two charges of trespassing at her residence, reports RTE.
Judge Codd characterised Coyle’s actions as appalling and claimed that his emails denigrated women in general as well as this particular individual.
According to the court, Coyle had a significant negative impact on the woman’s anxiety and self-esteem, and she was unsure whether she would ever be the same, reports RTE.
She claimed that Coyle’s trespassing at her house, his communication with her ex-husband, and the type and intensity of the harassment were all aggravating circumstances.
In mitigation, the judge stated that Coyle had entered a guilty plea and was dealing with underlying psychiatric problems as a result of growing up in an extremely challenging environment.
He had no prior convictions and had entered a guilty plea, reports RTE.
In a letter presented to the court by his attorney, Cathal McGreal, he also apologised and said he was extremely embarrassed by his actions.
Concerns regarding Coyle’s degree of understanding of his actions and how they affected his victim were raised in a probation report that the court heard.
Judge Codd sentenced him to three years in prison, stating that the case had to be marked with a custodial sentence. However, she suspended the last 18 months of his sentence with several restrictions, one of which was that he not communicate with the lady, reports RTE.
Tell us your thoughts in the Facebook post and share this with your friends.
