Female stalker bombarded glamorous travel company boss with a hundred phone calls and set up 20 fake online profiles to abuse her in ‘Baby Reindeer-like’ harassment campaign after wrongly believing she was dating her ex

A mother-of-two bombarded a glamorous travel company boss with more than 100 phone calls and set up 20 fake online profiles to abuse her in a ‘Baby Reindeer-esque’ harassment campaign after mistakenly believing she was in a relationship with her ex.

Emma Buckley, a 36-year-old healthcare supervisor, publicly branded Sarah Kidger, 34, a “home wrecker”, a “psycho” and a “slug”, and also shared malicious messages that caused financial damage to her business.

Miss Kidger was left in ‘anxiety and distress’ by the weeks of relentless messages and phone calls, and took to social media to compare her ordeal to the hit TV series Baby Reindeer and Buckley to the main stalker character, Martha.

Buckley, a care supervisor from Castleford, West Yorkshire, admitted harassment without violence at Leeds Magistrates Court.

She was sentenced to a 12-month community order, including 150 hours of unpaid work, and a two-year restraining order to prevent any contact with Miss Kidger.

Victim: Sarah Kidger was left in ‘anxiety and distress’ by weeks of relentless messages and phone calls

It is understood that Miss Kidger denies ever having a relationship with Buckley’s ex and that they are only long-term ‘friends’.

Fiona Newcombe, prosecuting, said the harassment took place in February and continued after Buckley was identified as responsible, initially arrested and released on bail.

Malicious comments were made on accounts under assumed names set up by Buckley on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, the court heard.

The anonymous calls she made to Miss Kidger repeated the same themes of “home-wreckers” and “slugs” of the social media posts made under assumed names, Miss Newcombe said. Some phone calls were made in the middle of the night.

There was also a threat that Miss Kidger would ‘pay for this’, the court heard.

Miss Newcombe said Miss Kidger was targeted because Buckley believed she was in a relationship with her ex-partner and had moved in with her.

In a victim personal statement, Miss Kidger said the harassment had a ‘severe impact on my mental health’.

She said the messages were directed at friends, family and the public, causing “damage and distress” and “affected her relationships”.

They also had damaging financial consequences for her online travel agency as the messages “suggested her business was a scam”, the court heard.

A probation officer told the court it started when her partner ‘went missing for four days’ and thought he was living with Miss Kidger.

She said this was her first offense and that Buckley’s mental health had deteriorated as a result of the lawsuit.

Buckley, a care supervisor from Castleford, West Yorkshire, admitted harassment without violence at Leeds Magistrates Court

The female harasser left malicious comments on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn under false names

Victim Sarah Kidger in a photo she shared on social media

Kevin Walker, defending, said the offense started when his client’s partner ‘moved in with the complainant’ and she made the comments online to ‘get at’ him. Their relationship was “unhappy, with domestic problems everywhere,” he said.

He said she was “distressed and remorseful about her actions and understands the distress it has caused”, adding: “This will be a stain on her good character.”

He said there had been no contact with Miss Kidger since she was interviewed about her offending and insisted Buckley had made ‘no threat of violence’.

Passing sentence, District Judge Richard Kitson told Buckley it was ‘totally inappropriate for her to behave in this way’ and said her harassment had a ‘significant impact’ on Miss Kidger.

He told her: ‘There was a high degree of planning and sophistication with these fake profiles and you intended to cause fear and distress with the huge number of calls you made.

“This behavior, no matter how wronged you feel, must stop.”

Miss Kidger was left in ‘anxiety and distress’ by the weeks of relentless messages and phone calls, taking to social media to compare her ordeal to the hit TV series Baby Reindeer and Buckley to the main stalker character, Martha (pictured)

Buckley was ordered to pay £114 victim surcharge and £85 costs.

Miss Kidger wrote about her ordeal on Facebook: ‘Despite being exposed to a witch hunt in recent weeks full of threats, violence, intimidation and attempts to damage my character and my business reputation, life is still good.

“If someone makes accusations and condemns a person without actually knowing all the facts, know that this is an abuse tactic used to make someone ‘feel guilty’ and can tell you a lot about that person. Make your own judgment and don’t believe what you are told without proof of the facts.

“Attempts to assassinate someone’s character are often a cheap and desperate attempt to mask one’s own insecurities and weaknesses.”

She noted that watching the hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer was “a little too close to home” and compared Buckley to the stalking lead character on the show, adding, “My perpetrator’s resemblance to Martha is unnerving.” ‘