Sinister menace stole underwear and daubed sexual slogans on women's cars

Jeffrey Burke used a black marker pen to scrawl vile comments on strangers' vehicles and front doors and left them feeling frightened.

Newcastle Crown Court heard some victims were targeted repeatedly and Burke used words to describe their appearance, which let them know they had been watched.

The 52-year-old pest left a pair of pink knickers on the wing mirror of one victim's car and heavy breathed through the intercom of another frightened woman, after causing terror by repeatedly tapping on her window.

Even after being arrested and given a sexual risk order, Burke breached it by creeping into a garden to steal a woman's underwear which had been left out to dry.

The court heard Burke, who is a joiner by trade, has a previous conviction for sexually assaulting a female in a park in Sunderland and for confronting a woman with a screwdriver during a burglary at her home.

He has twice been caught with ladies underwear in his home when it was searched in the past.

Prosecutor Annelise Haugstad told the court in the latest offences nine women who lived in two areas of Gateshead, came under attack between January 2019 and December 2020.

One victim was left "very spooked" when her car was vandalised with sexualised graffiti three times over a 21-month period.

Another woman's car was targeted four times, with wording such as "I love your big ****" and "I want to **** you so hard".

The court heard victim found the words "lovely body for your age" on hercar and a few days later she found pink underwear on the wing mirror, with the words "I want to see you wearing these, blondie", scrawled in black marker on the paintwork.

She said in a victim statement: "The incidents left me feeling angry, the fact someone could attend and intentionally damage my car.

"I felt afraid, I felt the offender has watched me, the incidents made me paranoid that friendly people I spoke to in the area could be the person doing it."

The court heard one woman was bombarded with constant tapping on her window, whenever she switched her lights on on a morning.

Even when she moved to a room, the tapping sound, made by Burke would follow her.

The then progressed to calling her via intercom and heavy breathing and one time said: "Do you still get up at the same time every morning? I like to watch you get in the shower and get ready for work".

She was left "terrified".

Women's front doors were also defaced with the shocking daubings , which left them feeling vulnerable and paranoid.

Burke was arrested and given a sexual risk order in October 2022 but a week later was found on enclosed premises trying to steal underwear. The following month he stole women's underwear from a drying rack in a garden.

He admitted charges of harassment, criminal damage, theft, having an article with intent to commit criminal damage (a marker pen) and breach of a sexual risk order.

Judge Julie Clemitson sentenced Burke, of Fern Dene Road, Gateshead, to two years behind bars and issued lifelong restraining orders to keep him away from the women and their cars.

The judge said some of the offences were "clearly intended to maximise fear and distress" and added: "This was a campaign of harassment against nine women."

Tony Davis, defending, said Burke has mental health disorders and has said he is remorseful.