Coleraine man fined for stalking woman he met through dating app

Frankie Donaghy (57) of Long Commons in Coleraine admitted a charge of stalking that occurred on April 25 of this year.

The Magistrates’ Court sitting heard that the injured party contacted police due to the behaviour of Donaghy after they had met through a dating app. The woman said that after some brief contact, she had made it clear that she did not want a relationship with the defendant. She said he then sent her multiple messages and cards and visited her home with gifts.

The court also heard that the injured party was concerned about the behaviour escalating and the fact that some of the messages were sexual in nature. When the defendant Donaghy was interviewed, he accepted the contact but denied that it was over the period of time that the woman claimed.

During the sitting in Londonderry Magistrates’ Court, defence solicitor Paddy McGurk said his client accepted that his behaviour was 'entirely unacceptable'. He described the incident as 'a catastrophic misreading of signals' after what the solicitor said had been 'a very short term intense relationship.' Defence solicitor Mr McGurk added that his client was 'absolutely appalled' at his conduct and was 'very remorseful'.

District Judge Barney McElholm said that the defendant Donaghy 'had lost the run of himself'. He fined him £500 and imposed a Restraining Order for a period of 3 years.