An unemployed handyman who threatened to stab his elderly neighbours and egged the terrified couple’s car has walked free from court.
Neighbour-from-hell Sean Dobson, 34, also smashed flowerpots that belonged to 60-something pair Irene and Clive Whitley and destroyed flowers that were a gift from their daughter.
The harassment was reportedly triggered by Irene and Clive’s decision to get their doorbell fitted with a camera.
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Dobson, from Basingstoke, believed that the device had been installed to spy on him, even though it was directed away from his front door.
And, in one particularly unsavoury incident, he even pulled down his trousers and mooned at the doorbell camera.
The Whitleys have described how they “felt trapped inside their home” and were left “shaking with fear” because of Dobson’s behaviour.
Clive, who is disabled, skipped physio appointments due to the dread that he might encounter their tormentor outside and Irene also missed work for the same reason.
Appearing at Winchester Crown Court, Dobson pleaded guilty to harassment with fear of violence, but left smirking for the cameras after being handed an 18-month suspended prison sentence.
Dobson was living in Basingstoke on the same corridor as the Whitleys in housing association accommodation when the harassment started in January 2020.
The couple, who had lived their for six years, claimed to have “loved” their home until the abuse began and they have now moved out.
Court heard how Dobson would shout: “Come out you old c**** “to them and that he would “whack” them, making Irene too scared to be home alone.
(Image: Solent News & Photo Agency)
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Prosecutor Keely Harvey said: “Mr Dobson made their lives a misery, and they said it was never-ending. They described him as scary and intimidating. As a result, they requested to move accommodation.”
A police officer, who was another neighbour of the Whitleys, filed 20 reports about Dobson’s intimidation on their behalf.
But he was only arrested in April 2021 after he acted aggressively when officers arrived to take a report and he blocked their entry to the building by wedging a sheet of plastic in the door.
“When they got in, they found Mr Dobson at the Whitleys’ door, who claimed he was confronting Mr Whitley about why he was telling people that Mr Dobson had threatened to stab them,” Ms Harvey added. “He told the police he was being harassed by the Whitleys.”
Dobson, who now lives in Botley, Hants, was ordered to pay £300 to the victims, undertake 200 hours of community service, enrol in a Thinking Skills programme and was given a restraining order of five years.
Sentencing him, Judge Jane Miller said: “They installed CCTV in the form of a doorbell because they were concerned that a previous neighbour had set fire to his flat. That caused you to become angry and paranoid.
“I have seen dozens of clips from the doorbell and they are pretty astonishing. Your real problem is managing your emotions and your impulsivity.”
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