Northampton man fined £300 and given restraining order after harassing council staff

A Northampton man has been given a restraining order and fined £300 by a county judge after intimidating council staff in a harassment 'campaign' spanning more than 76 calls in fewer days.

Simon John Cave, 60, of The Square, Upton, Northampton, verbally abused and intimidated council staff, which included threatening their lives, Northampton Magistrates Court heard.

Despite initially denying the charges, Cave later changed his plea to guilty after additional charges were filed.

He was joined in the offences by Lisa May Willmott, 45, of the same address, who pled guilty to harassment charges. However she has yet to be sentenced, due to the need for a pre-sentence report.

The prosecution said that staff received more than 76 calls from the pair between September 1 and November 9 2021, many of which were harassing and threatening in nature.

He read: "Between the hours of the morning and about 11:30am, the staff received calls which, when later reviewed by a team manager because they were concerned by the messages, took the view that they were threatening and notified the police.

"The gist of it being 'We're going to get you. You're finished'."

The prosecution described a particularly nasty incident on September 7, where Willmott and Cave both harassed staff in person.

He read: "She approached a member of staff and said 'I'm going to kill you. I'm going to rip your head off'. It looked like she had a bottle in her hand as some kind of weapon.

"No violence occurred but the threat was there.

"The male defendant was there and was verbally abusive as well.

"There has been a great deal of upset for the witnesses here today."

The drama reportedly unfolded because Willmott's elderly mother had been placed in a care home by Adult Social Services. Willmott herself is cared for by Cave, with whom she is not in a relationship but lives with as a 'friend'.

However the female defendant wanted her mother released back into her care.

When this was repeatedly denied, due to Willmott's own condition and certain financial concerns, the abuse began.

Cave's defence argued that Wilmott was the primary instigator of the situation, blaming '90 percent' of the 'campaign' on her, but admitted that Cave had not responded well and had added to the harassment himself.

He argued that Cave had been swept up in WiIlmott's fury and had not managed his anger well.

Cave's defence argued: "There is no question whatsoever that it didn't occur or that there was no harm done.

"However, in today's day and age, there is no-one that hasn't made a call like this in our time.

"In today's day and age, everything has gone remote, in a queue and takes a really long time. It's a bureaucratic brick wall.

"He and Ms Willmott got angered and they didn't know how to vent that anger. It got the best of them."

Simon John Cave was fined a total of £300, including a £95 victim surcharge. This added to 30 rehabilitation activity days focused on anger management, and a restraining order lasting for three years.