A stalker who bombarded his ex with unwanted phone calls was spotted by police standing outside her home in the middle of the night, eating pizza.
Lovesick James Robertson plagued his former partner with bizarre and sometimes sinister voicemail messages.
In one recording he told her: “I hope you rot in hell”.
But he also professed his love and sang Pretty Woman down the phone.
There were also messages with just the sound of heavy breathing.
Perth Sheriff Court heard police officers visited the woman at her home in Perth’s McCallum Court to hear some of the recordings.
During their visit, Robertson called again and left a message to say he was going to get pizza.
When officers left the property, they spotted the 49-year-old standing under a streetlight and tucking into pizza with a mushroom and sweetcorn topping.
‘A dog licking a bowl’
Robertson, of Elcho Court, Perth, was found guilty after trial of engaging in a course of conduct which caused his ex-partner fear or alarm, by repeatedly texting and phoning her and uttering sexual remarks, between November 24 and December 18, last year.
He was convicted of a second, similar charge of repeatedly calling and leaving voicemail messages between September 22 and October 9.
Unemployed Robertson was cleared of an allegation he repeatedly masturbated while leaving voicemail messages.
A recording which his former partner said in evidence sounded like Robertson pleasuring himself was played to the court.
Questioned about this voicemail by fiscal depute Joanne Ritchie, Robertson said he could not remember what he was doing but denied it was sexual.
He suggested it could be the noise of “someone eating” or a “dog licking a bowl”.
Sheriff Francis Gill told Robertson he did not find his evidence “credible nor reliable.”
He said: “You ought to have known that your conduct was likely to cause your ex-partner fear or alarm.”
Sentence was deferred until March 18.
Ex was ‘frightened’ of accused
The court heard Robertson called his former girlfriend around 15 times a day.
Ms Ritchie said: “She said that the calls were annoying.
“But she also stated that she was frightened of the accused.”
She said Robertson called at unsocial hours and when she blocked his number he used alternative ways to contact her.
Giving evidence, Robertson said he had been in a relationship with the woman “on and off” for about eight years.
At one point he asked her to marry him and she said yes.
A year or so later, she changed her mind.
He admitted he had struggled to get over the end of the relationship.
Asked about the night he was spotted outside her house, he said: “I took some pizza. I was going to share it with her.
“When I saw the police van, I was concerned for her but I didn’t realise the police were there for me.”
Asked by solicitor Paul Ralph if he sang down the phone to try and win her over, he said: “Yes, maybe.”
Previous conviction
PC Lindsay Brown told the court she had visited the ex-partner late on September 23, 2021, to speak to her about the voicemails.
“She appeared quite nervous.
“She said she had received messages and was extremely scared by the content of some of them.”
When Robertson was charged, he told police: “I was just making sure she was okay”.
In 2018, Robertson admitted flouting bail conditions banning him from contacting the same woman and was fined £500.
The court heard he repeatedly left voicemails for her and gave her the impression bail conditions had been dropped.
