‘Jealous and obsessed’ Harrogate man jailed for stalking ex-partnerHarrogate businessman receives conditional dischargeHarrogate businessman denies stalking allegation

A Harrogate businessman is to face trial by jury after denying allegations of stalking and breaching a restraining order.

Jason Shaw, 55, of Rutland Drive, appeared at York Crown Court via video link today when he pleaded not guilty to the two allegations.

The prosecution alleges that Mr Shaw – who owns Pineheath, the historic, 12-bedroom mansion on Cornwall Road – stalked a woman named in court between November 2023 and March this year, causing her to fear that violence would be used against her, in that he drove past her, turned up at her workplace and her home, and sent notes to her and left her a gift.

He is also accused of breaching a restraining order by entering the woman’s home in February this year.

Judge Simon Hickey set a trial date of September 2. It is due to last three days.

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Harrogate businessman charged with stalking

Harrogate businessman Jason Shaw is due to appear in court charged with stalking.

Mr Shaw, 55, of Rutland Drive, owns Pineheath, the 12-bedroom home on Cornwall Road that was once home to Sir Dhunjibhoy Bomanji and Lady Frainy Bomanji. His plans to amend the property were approved by North Yorkshire Council this year.

He is charged with stalking involving serious harm / distress between October 1 last year and March 12 this year in Harrogate.

Mr Shaw is also charged with breaching a restraining order and harassment in February this year.

He is due to appear at York Crown Court on April 15.

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Harrogate man jailed for stalking ex-partner

A vengeful Harrogate man has been jailed today for stalking his ex-partner, breaking into her home and smashing her work van — while she was inside.

Colby Beattie, 22, waged a relentless stalking campaign against the young woman following the breakdown of their relationship, York Crown Court heard.

In September last year, about six months after their relationship ended, Beattie broke into her home on Albert Road, Harrogate, and started smashing items in her kitchen including kettles, plates and the oven door while she was upstairs.

Prosecutor Brooke Morrison said the victim called police who arrested Beattie. He was released on bail on the proviso that he didn’t contact the victim or go to her address.

However, about two weeks later she came downstairs to find him standing in her kitchen doorway. The terrified victim screamed and called police as Beattie fled from the property.

About a week later, on October 1, the victim noticed there were two flat tyres on her Citroen Berlingo works van. She suspected that Beattie had tampered with the tyres as she had only just recently had their pressure checked.

The following day, one of the tyres came off the vehicle and she noticed that some of the bolts were missing from the wheel.

Three days later, she noticed that a screw had been inserted into one of the tyres and another had been slashed.

On October 11, she received a message from Beattie while she was out of the house. Part of the message read: “Whose are the joggers?”

It was obvious to the victim that Beattie had been inside her home because the jogging bottoms belonged to a man with whom she was in a new relationship and had been left in her bedroom.

She called police out again and they searched her home to check if Beattie was still there. He wasn’t, but an hour after they left the victim received a series of phone calls from him.

Ms Morrison said:

“Later that day she left the house again and when she returned in her work van, she saw him come round the corner on a pushbike.

“He got off the pushbike and approached her van (while she was still inside), climbed onto the van and started kicking and stomping on the windscreen until it smashed.”

He then started “kicking and pulling” at the driver’s door and tried to open it. When it failed to open, he jumped on the roof and started stamping on the vehicle again.

The petrified victim called police and was “screaming down the phone for help” from inside the van, at which point Beattie jumped off the vehicle and rode off on his bike. Ms Morrison added:

“She stayed in the van for a period of time out of fear.

“When she got out, her garden gate was open and her dogs came running out.”

The victim knew this meant that Beattie must have been inside her home again. When she went inside the property, she found that the dinner she had left out had been tipped in the kitchen sink, her bank card and passport had been cut up and “left in pieces” on the kitchen island, her TV screen and iPad had been smashed up, and a packet of prescription pills and the contents of her washing machine and dryer had been emptied onto the floor. She also discovered that £240 had gone missing from a money box.

She received yet more phone calls during and after this horrifying discovery but didn’t answer them.

‘Only one sentence can be imposed’

Beattie, of Parliament Terrace, Harrogate, was charged with burglary, stalking and damaging the victim’s property. He admitted all three matters and appeared for sentence today.

The court was told that the victim hadn’t been able to work since the incident because of the damage to her van. The repair bill was as yet unknown.

At the time of the offences, Beattie was subject to a community order imposed in June last year for threatening to damage property.

Defence barrister Benjamin Bell said that Beattie “lost (everything) when the relationship went downhill” because the victim was his “first love”.

Judge Simon Hickey told Beattie:

“For this type of behaviour against this young woman there’s only one sentence that can be imposed and that’s immediate custody.”

He said the victim must have been “terrified” by Beattie’s behaviour which was aggravated by the fact that he was on bail and under a court order at the time of the offences.

Beattie was jailed for 17 months but will only serve half of that time behind bars before being released on prison licence.

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Harrogate businessman given suspended sentence for stalking ex-partner

A millionaire Harrogate businessman has been given a suspended jail sentence for stalking and assaulting his ex-partner.

Jason Ronald Shaw, 54, told the named victim he hired a private detective to keep track of her movements and even installed a hidden camera on her phone charger.

Shaw – the owner of Pineheath, the historic Harrogate mansion which has been the subject of much intrigue in the town recently after it was put up for auction at a reduced asking price of £3 million – was charged with stalking, common assault and damaging the victim’s property but initially denied the offences. 

He ultimately admitted all three matters a week after being remanded in custody.   

He appeared for sentence via video link at York Magistrates’ Court today knowing his liberty was in the balance. 

‘Looking dangerous’

Prosecutor Kathryn Walters said Shaw and the named victim had been in a “toxic, on-off” relationship between November 2020 and May this year after meeting at the David Lloyd gym in Harrogate where they were both members. 

Matters came to a head late at night on May 20 when her niece called police to her home in Harrogate after spotting Shaw “snooping around in the garden” and “looking dangerous”.

She told the call operator that Shaw had “turned up looking for (the named victim)” and that he had attacked her following a “tussle over a mobile phone” which caused bruising to her arm.

Shaw had then headed to her home nearby and removed the ring doorbell from the front of the house, before returning to her niece’s property where he rang the doorbell and started shouting.

The two women, who were at the niece’s home, then spotted Shaw in the back of the garden where the named victim’s car was parked. 

They believed he had been “fiddling” with the car’s wheels. They later discovered that valve caps had been removed and the tyres were deflated.

Police arrived and found Shaw hiding in the property wearing only shorts and flip flops. He was duly arrested.

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The named victim told police that she had been stalked by Shaw for over a year during which time he had followed her around in public places, monitored her movements and loitered around her house. 

She said that Shaw had isolated her from friends and family and would take her phone from her “to check what she had been doing”.

Photo taken from the rear of Pineheath, the derelict mansion on Cornwall Road in Harrogate that is currently up for sale. The Rutland Drive building plot is shown in the foreground.

Pineheath in Harrogate

She said he tried to control her and make her financially dependent on him. He would turn up at her workplace and follow her around when she was out shopping.

She said he would constantly make video calls to check “where she was and who she was with”.

Hidden camera

In the moments before the attack on May 20, Shaw had been looking through her phone and asked her who one of her male contacts was. When she told him it was a friend, he grabbed her arm, causing injury.

She said Shaw would “buy her things and then take them from her”. He once gave her a phone charger on which he had installed a hidden camera.

He would turn up unexpectedly when she was out with friends, at the gym or the cinema, and once told her he had hired a private investigator to carry out surveillance on her.

Shaw’s behaviour had had a “huge” impact on her mental wellbeing and self-worth. She had since hired a life coach to help with problems such as sleeplessness. 

The stress she had suffered had affected her work as a beautician and the relationship with her family had deteriorated.

She said she had “absolutely no escape” from Shaw and had lost her bubbly personality. She was left feeling “constantly down, tired and miserable”. 

In 2020, Shaw was given a jail sentence at the crown court for stalking and assaulting another partner. He had also uploaded sexual photos of her onto the internet.

His solicitor advocate Peter Minnikin said that Shaw realised his behaviour was “disgusting”. 

He added:

“He accepts that it is now over and accepts that he needs to improve himself.”

A probation report concluded that Shaw presented a “high risk” to future partners.

‘Cause for concern’

Magistrates’ chairman Mr R Childerhouse said there were “quite a few high risks here that give us cause for concern”.

He said the offences were so serious that they warranted a jail sentence, but that this could be suspended because Shaw had ultimately admitted the offences and there was a “realistic prospect of rehabilitation”.

Shaw was given a 20-week suspended prison sentence with 150 hours of unpaid work and a 30-day rehabilitation programme. He was ordered to pay £125 costs and £500 compensation to the named victim. 

He was also slapped with a five-year restraining order banning him from contacting the victim and entering her street in Killinghall.

Pineheath, the former home of Indian shipping magnate Sir Dhunjibhoy Bomanji, was put up for auction last month at a much reduced asking price after failing to find a buyer. 

The derelict, 40-room mansion on Cornwall Road, near Shaw’s home in Rutland Drive, is part of the Duchy estate and in its heyday as a family home it was fully staffed and had gold-plated taps and a centrally heated garage of Rolls-Royces. 

Following the death of Sir Dhunjibhoy’s daughter in 2012, Pineheath was sold for £2 million to Mr Shaw in 2013.

North Yorkshire Police progress on stalking ‘positive’ but needs more detectives

North Yorkshire Police are better at dealing with stalking cases than they were a year ago, according to the force’s head of safeguarding.

However, Detective Superintendent Fiona Wynne was concerned that the size of the team currently dealing with the issue was “impacting investigations of stalking”.

The team is currently made up of one detective and two stalking support officers.

North Yorkshire Police said 2.3 million people experience stalking in the UK in a calendar year. The average case lasts for 15 months.

Det Supt Wynne made the assessment while reviewing the force’s 2022 stalking audit at the monthly accountability meeting chaired by Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Zoë Metcalfe.

Ms Metcalfe secured £100,000 from the government for the force to carry out the review.

Compared to the 2021, there were “positive increases seen in almost all areas” of how stalking complaints were dealt with in the force control room.

Call handlers were reported to be better at identifying incidents of stalking and knowing how to respond to complainants.

Issues remained, though, with how stalking was logged on the police’s computer systems.

The lack of specialist detectives also meant some low- and medium-level cases could not be dealt with by the stalking team.

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Zoe Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

Zoë Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

“Additional suppressed demand”

North Yorkshire Police predicted that the number of stalking cases would continue to increase.

Part of this was expected to be to victims coming forward detailing historical stalking incidents.

Det Supt Wynne said:

“14% of those [stalking and stalking-related] offences [in 2021] were… historical offences, non-recent offences of stalking. That basically means that there is an additional suppressed demand which we may see unfolding as the years go on.”

Det Supt Wynne also pointed to the fact that more stalking was now being done using digital technology.

Stalkers were also reportedly using digital devices more often. This included using wireless connections to listen into people’s smart speakers and baby monitors.

The force is working with the personal safety charity the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which provides help and advice on stalking.

Review into stalking and harassment response in North Yorkshire

A review is to be carried out into how stalking and harassment is dealt with in North Yorkshire.

The review aims to help police and partners respond better to such incidents.

It is being funded by £100,000 of government money secured by Zoe Metcalfe, the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

The review will be conducted in partnership with the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, a charity that aims to reduce the level of violence and aggression in society.

A press release by Ms Metcalfe’s office said:

“It will see a victim-focused assessment of local systems, processes, training and practice carried out to help North Yorkshire Police and partners understand and respond better to stalking and harassment.

 

“Bespoke training will be provided to police officers and staff from partner organisations to become ‘stalking and harassment advocates’ and provide information, support, advice and guidance to their colleagues.”

£700,000 to protect homes 

Me Metcalfe has also secured £700,000 to prevent neighbourhood crime with an extension of her office’s Protect Your Home scheme.

More than 1,000 homes and 90 farms along the borders of Harrogate borough and Craven district will use the funding to prevent burglaries and protect individuals, families and businesses,

Security upgrades include new locks for vulnerable doors, windows, garages and sheds, and alarm systems for farms and small holdings.

Eligible residents will receive a registration pack through the post shortly.

North Yorkshire Police will also purchase additional Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras and upgrade Rural Watch signs in specific locations to detect and deter potential burglars.

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Total funding of £809,095 has been secured for the two schemes from the Home Office Safer Streets Fund, which the government launched in 2020 to reduce and prevent crime.

Preventing neighbourhood crime and addressing violence against women and girls are two of Ms Metcalfe’s priorities as commissioner.

She said the schemes will have “a real, tangible impact on how safe people feel both in and outside their homes”, adding:

“This is the fourth time the commissioner’s office has secured additional Home Office funding to support residents across North Yorkshire and York be safe and feel safe and I am confident that what these two schemes will deliver will make a huge difference to individuals, families and communities.”

Parishes eligible for the Protect Your Home scheme are:

 

 

 

Gay man says Harrogate police take women victims of stalking more seriously

A man who was stalked and harassed by his former partner has accused police of failing to take the case seriously because he was a gay man. 

Jack* and his partner of five years, Paul*, who both live in Harrogate, broke up in early 2021.  

Although the split was instigated by his partner, and was initially amicable, Jack said Paul soon began to turn up at his house and at places he would usually visit. 

Jack said: 

“Though there was no physical altercation, he often targeted my home. He tried to gain entry and would often appear in the garden – on one occasion my dog was nearly killed.

“He’d shout at people visiting my home from his car, monitor my friends and families activities. He used to set up dating profiles attempting to send abuse. There were occasions where he used my credit card details for online purchases, turned up at my place of work, approach me in restaurants…

“There were numerous situations like that over the course of five months. He started locating me and rev his car next to me if I was out walking.

“It meant I couldn’t operate a normal life without some kind of obstruction and feeling very unsafe and frightened.”

Eventually, after realising how much Paul’s actions were affecting his social and work life, Jack decided to contact the police last June. 

He was initially uncertain whether the situation was something the police would deal with, but was reassured by the call handler. 

“Immediately, they said it was stalking and harassment. They said they would send someone out, and he called later that day to organise a visit. He came to take a statement within a couple of days. 

“He repeated to me that it was serious and said my ex would be brought in and arrested and they would impose bail conditions to keep him away from me.” 

Relieved

Jack said he felt relieved he was being taken seriously and waited to receive an update from the officer. 

However, he never received a call. 

“A month went by and nothing had happened. I tried to get in contact and had no response. 

“Another month went by of the same thing. I heard there was a warrant out for his arrest, but after that a lot of time went by with nothing, no arrest, no feedback.” 

Meanwhile, Paul’s behaviour continued to make Jack feel uncomfortable. Jack reported further instances of stalking and harassment, but never heard anything back. 

He received a call from a specialist police officer who advised getting new locks, increasing home security and changing his routine. While Jack appreciated the advice, it also served as a reminder that he could be in danger. 

Jack was advised by specialist police to change his locks and increase his home security

By mid-September, Jack said he felt frustrated that he had still heard nothing and submitted a complaint to the police by email. It took six weeks for them to respond. 

The answer from an inspector in early November was that the PC assigned to his case was inexperienced, and had been given advice about his work.  

Paul had now been interviewed, he said, and a file would be submitted to the CPS for advice about charging him. 

In an email seen by the Stray Ferret, the inspector added: 

“I am sorry that you didn’t receive the service you expected, but this was purely down to [the officer’s] relative inexperience, managing competing pressures of his workload and his thought process in not thinking it appropriate to ring [Paul] or visit his work premises.” 

Yet more time passed with no information from the police. Jack emailed again asking for updates, and for a copy of his original statement, but received no response. 

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He heard no further until February this year, when IDAS – the domestic abuse charity which he had been put in touch with by police after he first called them – told him the case had been dropped five weeks earlier. 

The reason was nothing to do with evidence or proof. Rather, Jack said, it was because the officer dealing with the case had only passed the file to the CPS a week before charges had to be made or the case had to be dropped. 

Effectively, there was not enough time for the CPS to process it before the six-month deadline for dealing with the case had passed. 

While he accepts there is nothing he can do in his case, Jack said he hopes raising the issue publicly will help other victims who might face similar problems. 

He believes complaints of stalking and harassment are taken more seriously when made by women about men, but said that shouldn’t be the case. 

Jack said: 

“I have spoken to women in Harrogate who have been in the same situation and that’s not what happened for them. I have no doubt, if I had been a woman, it would have been very different. 

“It’s not about being homophobic. But when it’s a man complaining about a man, it’s treated differently.” 

Jack has now taken his complaint to the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Zoe Metcalfe. He is awaiting a response from her. 

He said: 

“If I had read a story about this situation six or eight months ago, I would have done something sooner. I would have known it was not normal procedure – a lot of people would just assume you can’t complain [about the police] and what they say goes, but it’s not always the case.” 

Zoe Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner

The Stray Ferret contacted North Yorkshire Police, but we were told they could not respond while the case was being investigated by the PFCC.  

The PFCC’s office said it could not comment on an individual case because of data protection. A spokesperson declined to comment on the issue of whether gender or sexuality could play a part in officers’ handling of cases, but added: 

“If somebody is not happy with anything that the police do, they should contact our office and make a complaint and we will investigate it.

“Let us know about it, because people should be happy. We don’t like it when people are unhappy with the service that’s provided by the police.”

 

*names changed to protect identities 

Rise in fraud and stalking reports as North Yorkshire crime rates fall

Crime across North Yorkshire fell by 9% in the year to September 2020, according to the latest data.

Using statistics for crimes reported to police forces across the country, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said 42,879 crimes were reported in the county up to September 2020, compared to 47,368 up to September 2019.

Among the most significant falls were burglary, which fell by 30%, theft from person, which dropped by 49%, and shoplifting, which dropped by 28%. Reports of sexual offences also declined by 16%.

However, there were increases in the number of violent crimes reported, with stalking and harassment increasing by 19% year on year. Fraud and crimes relating to computer misuse rose by 32% compared to the previous year.

Drug offences rose by 13%, there was an 18% rise in reports of possession of offensive weapons, and an increase of 12% in public order offences.

North Yorkshire Police Deputy Chief Constable Phil Cain said:

“We believe stalking and harassment offences have continued to rise due to the fact victims have increased confidence in reporting it. The increase can also be attributed to the requirement to record multiple crimes where stalking and/or harassment has occurred, rather than simply one crime per incident.

“With drugs offences, the rise reflects our pro-active approach to dealing with drugs issues such as county lines. This issue causes a disproportionate amount of harm to local communities and increases the fear of crime – this is why county lines continues to remain a priority.

“My thanks go to the public for providing the community intelligence which enables this pro-active work to be carried out. This intelligence is key to us achieving these results.”

He said while the first lockdown had reduced many areas of crime, there was a significant rise in people being stopped by officers at some of the county’s beauty spots last summer. Taking increased enforcement action led to the number of public order offences being higher than the previous year.

Low crime rate

North Yorkshire remains one of the lowest-crime areas in the country, according to the new statistics, falling sixth behind of Cumbria, Warwickshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Dyfed-Powys. Taking into account population size, the crime rate for North Yorkshire is the lowest in England and Wales.

The county showed the lowest crime statistics for the whole of Yorkshire in almost every area. However, the number of bicycle thefts was higher than South Yorkshire in the year to September 2020, and the rate of cycle thefts when factoring in population size was higher than both South and West Yorkshire.

The rate of fraud and computer crime offences in the county was also higher than in any other area of Yorkshire when taking into account population size.

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Nationally, the latest statistics show overall crime has fallen in England and Wales compared to the previous year. Helen Ross from the Office for National Statistics Centre for Crime and Justice said:

“The coronavirus pandemic and related lockdown restrictions have resulted in fluctuations in the level of crime experienced in England and Wales. Data from the survey showed decreases in crime at the start of the pandemic, with rises seen over the summer months, specifically in theft, following the easing of lockdown measures, with overall crime now back at pre-lockdown levels of January to March 2020.”

Mr Cain added:

“The landscape of policing will endure change as we respond to the pandemic, however we will continue to place victims at the centre of everything we do.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank our committed workforce who do their very best every day to keep our communities safe. Equally I want to thank the public of North Yorkshire and the City of York for their support during this incredibly challenging time for us all.”