Representative image of a stalker.
Credit: iStock Photo
Break-ups are usually a traumatic experience for anybody, especially for those still in love with their partner. And in grief, many people tend to do things that they regret later. This nurse from Exeter, Devon in England, took things a bit too far.
A report by Mirror stated that Sophie Colwill, a 30-year-old nurse, met 54-year-old dentist David Pagliero, who was looking for 'companionship' following the death of his wife.
The two of them hit it off, but split up later on. An obsessed Colwill then started following her ex-lover around the town. In one incident, she followed Pagliero to a local business, where the dentist saw her opening his car with what he assumed was a spare key she had. He left his vehicle in the car park for a while because he thought he was being tracked, only to return later and find her still present there.
The nurse had also trespassed into Pagliero's £1.35 million five-bedroom detached home. According to Mirror, Alistair Verheijen, the prosecuting lawyer in the case, said Colwill broke into to the dentist's home and "there was a tug of war" as the defendant attempted to take his mobile phone. Colwill then fled through a window.
The prosecutor also alleged that she called him about 965 times in a single day and more than 1,000 times the next day. The situation became so traumatic for Pagliero that the father of two began worrying about her constantly following him and hiding in bushes by his driveway.
However, the dentist also asked the court to treat her with kindness, saying he did not seek vengeance but her actions "wore him down".
Colwill was given a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and made subject of a five-year restraining order banning her from contacting Pagliero or going to his home or dental clinic, Mirror reported.