Syed Ali, 44, pictured outside Manchester magistrates court, repeatedly telephoned Riffat Riaz late into the night after learning the four bedroom detached was going on the market
A company director hounded his ex-wife with 650 calls in 12 days after she put their £300,000 family home up for sale without asking him.
Syed Ali, 44, repeatedly telephoned Riffat Riaz late into the night after learning the four bedroom detached house was going on the market.
In some calls he warned her: ‘You have 24 hours to take the ‘for sale’ signs down – or there will be consequences.’
During his torrent of calls, Ali was said to be abusive to businesswoman Mrs Riaz, 43, and also accused her of letting two of their three children play truant from school.
He was initially given a warning after Mrs Riaz who is managing director of a lifestyle consultancy went to police but he was later arrested when the nuisance calls persisted.
At one point he called her 513 times in a three day period alone.
In a statement Mrs Riaz said: ‘This pattern of behaviour had a huge impact on me as my ex husband was constantly contacting me.
‘Whilst on the outside I might look OK, inwardly I feels scared and can’t do anything about it. I have three children to provide for, who the defendant is not helping with, and I am bringing them up alone. I’ve also since had to change my phone number.
‘This has affected me personally. My confidence is now gone and I have become paranoid. It has taken me a long time for me to move on.’
At Manchester magistrates court Ali, who lives in an apartment in Rochdale admitted harassment and was sentenced to 10 months jail suspended for 18 months.
Riffat Riaz, pictured, said the behaviour of her ex-husband had left her feeling scared and she had to change her phone number
During his torrent of calls, Ali, pictured outside Manchester magistrates court, was said to be abusive to businesswoman Mrs Riaz, 43, and also accused her of letting two of their three children play truant from school
He was also prohibited from contacting Mrs Riaz for two years under the terms a restraining order.
It is not known whether the £300,000 property complete with ornamental fish pond is still up for sale. Its location cannot be named for legal reasons.
The court heard the couple who ran a number of marketing companies together had been married for 16 years but split up last year. The nuisance calls began on February 24 this year after Ali discovered his ex-wife had put their house up for sale.
Prosecutor Richard Greenhough said: ‘She received consistent calls from a ‘No Caller ID’, which she believed to be her ex husband.
‘She believed this as she answered one call and recognised the voice as that of her ex husband who became verbally abusive to her.
‘The reason for that was because he found out she put the house up for sale and the reason why she answered the call was she was selling the house both parties owned.
‘During the call he was saying: ‘you have 24 hours to take the ‘for sale’ signs down or there will be consequences.’
Due to that, the complainant called the police and following this call they went round to speak to this defendant to warn him of his behaviour and tell him not to have contact with her.
‘They did go round to the defendants address to give him a warning, which was located in a block of flats. Eventually when they were able to get into the building, he initially denied making any contact with the complainant, but was told not to make any further contact with his ex partner.
Ali has been prohibited from contacting Mrs Riaz, pictured, for two years under the terms a restraining order
‘However, the calls continued to his ex partner. An officer in the case made a check of the phones between the parties between 2nd March and 14th March. In total there were 655 calls made between parties. Between 3rd and 6th March, 513 calls were made.
‘Between 12th and 13th March, 106 calls were made. Of those calls, the most common time for contacting her was between 11pm and midnight. 274 calls were made during that time.
‘The second most common time was between 10 and 11, where 180 calls had been made. 104 calls were made after midnight but before 2.15am. Most of the calls were between one and five seconds.
‘As a result of that contact the complainant told the defendant if he had an issue he had to go through the court or via the solicitors. She has since had to change her phone number. There has been no further contact between parties since his arrest.’
In a statement Ali said: ‘Riffat Riaz is my ex partner and we were in a 16 year relationship and had three children together but the relationship broke down in 2018.
‘I had a nervous breakdown and I left work due to depression. I accept making the calls as my son and daughter were truanting at school and I was looking for information as I was concerned. Also, my ex wife was trying to sell our marital home without my consent or permission.’
In mitigation defence lawyer Miss Naila Akhtar said: ‘He was suffering with a mental breakdown and a report said he also had difficulties with having access to his children.
‘He has since suffered with insomnia. Last night he was up at 2am thinking about the court proceedings. His mental health is something he needs to deal with and is something he will have to do moving forward in his life.’
Sentencing Ali, chair of the bench Mr Hugh Keachie said: ‘These were persistent calls over a number of weeks and there was greater harm caused because of the distress caused to the victim and the effect it had on her life.’