Crime

Suspended jail sentence for obsessed stalker

Published

2 years ago

June 25, 2024

A MAN who sent a woman 80 Facebook messages over 14 days, before contacting her friends and family to try and find out where she lived has been handed a suspended sentence.

Jamie Norman, of Haverfordwest, pleaded guilty to stalking a woman after a four-week long campaign of messaging her, her former partner, and friends.

The 39-year-old’s actions culminated in him knocking every door on an estate in a physical search for the victim, after he made his own report to police that her friends were ‘keeping her away’ from him.

Dyfed-Powys Police officer DC Gmerek explained that on May 28 the suspect was swiftly arrested due to the severity and concerning nature of his offending.

“This was quite an unusual investigation as the offender himself contacted police when he claimed the victim’s friends were preventing her from being in contact with him,” she said.

“This was followed by a second call later the same day, in which he said he had further information about the victim’s address, and that he was going to knock doors in the area until he found her.

“This was clearly concerning behaviour, however at that point we were not aware of the extent of his behaviour towards the victim.”

Force control room call handlers received a report of a man calling at houses in an estate in Haverfordwest during the early hours of May 28, just hours after the suspect had himself contacted police.

CCTV footage showed it was Norman.

As enquiries continued, it was established that along with sending 80 messages to the victim – the majority of which were sent over one day – he had contacted her friends to ask if he should ‘pursue’ her, and even told her mother he wanted to marry her.

“There was a large amount of evidence to consider, given the number of messages sent both to the victim and others,” DC Gmerek said.

“The evidence showed a high degree of obsession, including sexual elements and implicit threat, as well as the FOUR behaviours of stalking: Fixated, obsessed, unwanted and repeated.

“A charge for stalking involving serious alarm or distress was authorised.”

Norman admitted the offence and appeared in court on June 18th, where he was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for 18 months. He must carry out 250 hours of unpaid work, and complete a rehabilitation activity requirement.

DC Gmerek said: “Stalking and harassment can cause serious distress to victims, leaving them looking over their shoulder and questioning their safety.

“Norman’s victim expressed feelings of anxiety and fear, and felt compelled to change parts of her lifestyle as a result of his behaviour.

“It is a very brave step to take in reporting stalking behaviour to police, and I would like to commend the victim in this case for reaching out for support.”

Eliminating domestic abuse, stalking and harassment is one of Dyfed-Powys Police’s priorities, and officers are committed to supporting victims who come forward to report crimes.

If you need support for domestic abuse, stalking or harassment, please visit https://www.dyfed-powys.police.uk/advice/

Crime

Local carpenter retains driving licence despite previous ban

Published

9 hours ago

May 6, 2026

Sarah Jane Absalom

A Herbrandston carpenter has been allowed to keep his driving licence despite a previous driving disqualification for using his mobile phone whilst driving.

Addressing District Judge Mark Layton at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court this week, Simon Shaw stressed the disqualification was having a major impact on his work commitment as well as his ability to support members of his family.

“If the ban continues, at least two of my five employees will have to be lost” said Shaw, who works as a self-employed carpenter operating from Herbrandston and the Milford Haven Industrial Estate.

“We travel throughout the whole of West Wales and also work at Thorne Island, where we’ve been providing logistical support for renovations for the last four years.”

Shaw, of Triplestone Close, Herbrandston, went on to say that his business has only one other driver who works as a reserve fire fighter.

“As a result, he’s not available to provide the 24 hour cover we provide to various care homes in the county,” he said.

Simon Shaw concluded by stating that his daughter is also dependent on his support having recently given birth to twins while his son-in-law and his partner’s mother are both currently undergoing serious healthcare treatments.

“I’m trying to provide as much logistical support for them as I can, but without my driving licence, this is impossible,” he said.

After listening to his comments, Judge Layton granted Shaw permission to retain his licence.

Crime

Delivery driver caught twice over legal drink-drive limit

Published

9 hours ago

May 6, 2026

Sarah Jane Absalom

A DELIVERY driver has been banned from the roads after being caught behind the wheel when he was over twice the legal drink-drive limit.

Twenty-nine year old Sam Rowe was stopped by officers just before 9.30 am on April 20 as he drove his Vauxhall Vivaro along Ferry Lane in Pembroke Dock.

“His speech was slurred and his eyes were bloodshot,” Crown Prosecutor Linda Baker told Haverfordwest Magistrates Court this week.

“There was also a strong smell of intoxicants emanating from him.”

When spoken to by the officers, Rowe stated he’d drunk a pint of alcohol approximately an hour before being stopped, however subsequent breathalyser tests showed he had no less than 75 mcg of alcohol in his system. The legal limit is 35.

Rowe, of Hazel Close, Pontypool, pleaded guilty to the offence and was represented in court by solicitor Michael Kelleher who informed the court that the defendant was holidaying in Pembrokeshire at the time of the offence.

“His daughter fell ill and he was attempting to find painkillers for her at a supermarket,” he said. “He’s very remorseful and is now going to lose his job as a delivery driver.”

Rowe, who has no previous convictions, was disqualified from driving for a total of 20 months. He was fined £120 and ordered to pay £85 court costs and a £48 surcharge.

Crime

Police tip-off leads to driving ban for Milford motorist

Published

9 hours ago

May 6, 2026

Sarah Jane Absalom

A PEMBROKESHIRE motorist has lost his licence after police received information that the 40-year-old male may have been driving under the influence of drugs.

This week Haverfordwest Magistrates court was told that at around 8.30pm on November 22 officers received a call informing them that Michael Miles was suspected of driving his Peugeot Bipper through Milford Haven after consuming drugs.

Miles was subsequently stopped on Marble Hall Road and when spoken to by the officers, he informed them that he was a drug user. A saliva sample tested positive for cocaine while further tests carried out at the police station showed that Miles had 760 mcg of the cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine in his system, the legal limit being 50.

Miles, of Milford Road, Steynton, chose to be legally unrepresented in court and pleaded guilty to the drug-driving charge.

The probation service said he was very remorseful for the offence and has since had appointments with the Dyfed Drugs and Alcohol Service to help him deal with his drug usage. Miles was served with an interim driving disqualification however as a result of his previous non-payment of fines, his punitive sentencing was adjourned to Thursday, May 7.

“If you pay your outstanding fines before Thursday, you will be fined for this offence,” warned District Judge Mark Layton. “But if you don’t pay, you will be given a custodial sentence.”