A jilted boyfriend who stole his girlfriend’s cat was spared jail – after she revealed they were still together.
Glen Dempsey twice burgled Shauna Robbins’ flat after she dumped him in October last year, and cruelly attacked her cat, showering it and closing a door on its head, which he filmed and sent to her.
But the 23-year-old avoided an almost-inevitable jail sentence when his girlfriend sent a pleading letter to the judge, asking he remain a free man.
Instead, he must attend a ‘Building Better Relationships’ course.
Dempsey flew into a rage after splitting with Miss Robbins, sending her text messages threatening to kill her brother and ‘slit her throat.’
Irishman Dempsey, of Earle Road, Wavertree, also put inappropriate photographs of her on Facebook, which were later deleted, and sent further texts threatening to ‘cut her brother from ear to ear.’
Judge Elizabeth Nicholls told Dempsey he owed his partner ‘a great debt’ after persuading her not to put him behind bars.
But she warned him that unless he ‘addressed his issues’ he would ‘become a disturbed young man.’
Glen Dempsey outside Liverpool Crown Court.
Dempsey, Liverpool Crown Court heard, was still traumatised by the death of his brother in Dublin, which prompted his own five year suspended sentence for firearm offences in 2012.
He spent a year in custody before his conviction for that crime, as ‘he was in fear of his own life;’, and what would happen if he remained on the streets, his barrister Holly Betke, said.
Dempsey, who admitted animal cruelty and harassment, and was found guilty of two counts of burglary, claimed the cat’s head ‘got stuck’ when closing the door.
In the fall out with Miss Robbins, police were informed of a fire at her home, before it was discovered and put out by neighbour Rafal Marko, last November.
The pair had lived together for six months at her flat in Walton before their break-up.
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Judge Nicholls described Dempsey’s actions towards the cat as ‘spiteful’, and posting the abuse video to his ex-girlfriend as ‘the actions of a disturbed young man,’
She said: “This was to inflict emotional pain on Miss Robbins.
“I am told both of you want to resume your relationship and Miss Robbins has stated she does not want you to go to custody and she acknowledges you need help and assistance.
“You should be very grateful to her, she has explored your past – you are a troubled young man who has failed to address significant and traumatic events in your past.
“You will not be able to form proper relationships with anyone in the future (if you don’t address your issues).”
Dempsey, who afterwards met up with Miss Robbins outside court, was handed a 16 month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and was also banned from owning an animal for four years.
Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/