Jail Threat to Woman Who Pestered Chairman

A lovestruck TV reporter who sent an "avalanche" of lewd and threatening phone messages to one of Britain's most high-profile football chairmen was yesterday ordered to stay away from him or risk five years' imprisonment.

Tara Stout, 35, received a 26-week jail sentence, suspended for two years, after a court heard how she bombarded Simon Jordan, the millionaire chairman of Crystal Palace football club, with lurid calls and texts. Westminster magistrates court heard that at the height of her campaign of harassment, she was contacting Mr Jordan between 100 and 200 times a day.

A harassment order had previously been served on Stout but district judge Quentin Purdy said she pursued a "wilful and sustained" campaign and had committed a "flagrant breach" of her previous warning from the police. A restraining order granted last week bans Stout from contacting Mr Jordan or his family directly or indirectly; the judge said if she breached that order, she risked five years' imprisonment. She was also ordered to carry out 200 hours' community service.

As she left court she said five weeks spent in jail on remand had been "scary" but that it had "opened my eyes".

Stout, who was representing herself, denied two counts of harassment but was convicted by Judge Purdy last week after he concluded that she was clearly guilty from what she had said herself in the witness box.

Yesterday she attended court wearing a black polka-dot mini-dress, red strappy sandals and carrying a matching red handbag. She stood in the dock with a red flower in her hair and a large crucifix round her neck. One day last week she arrived wearing a Crystal Palace tracksuit.

Stout sent Mr Jordan gifts such as underwear and love letters and billed him for shopping trips after they met in March 2005 at the nightclub Pangea in the West End of London. He told the court that sometimes she would ring up and read a book down the phone just to fill his voicemail box. On one occasion she left him a message threatening to "gut my mother and slice my nieces".

Though Jordan engaged a security firm and contacted police in April this year, the messages became "aggressive, insulting, derogatory, judgmental and ultimately taunting", he said.

Stout smiled as the court heard recordings of some of the voice messages she left Mr Jordan, including one in which she describes how she had sex with a man for money, using the proceeds to buy shoes. She claimed that Mr Jordan, who lives in Spain, sent her indecent and insulting messages and that he took cocaine. He, however, denied all her allegations and the judge stressed to the court that Mr Jordan, 37, was not the one on trial.

Before sentencing, Stout, who worked for Sky and the BBC, read out a letter of apology addressed to the taxpayers and residents of Westminster, as well as the employees and members of the magistrates court. "I have to apologise for using my knowledge of British law to force this case into a courtroom when I could easily have prevented it from reaching this eventuality," she said. She admitted manipulating the legal system, to "voice my opinions with the benefit of privilege" - knowing that by making the allegations in court, she could not be sued.

Stout, of Clapham, south London, previously hit the headlines when it was reported she swapped text messages with former England captain and BBC presenter Gary Lineker. In April she streaked naked through Soho in protest at being evicted from her flat by porn king Paul Raymond.

Mr Jordan did not comment yesterday but following Stout's conviction he expressed sympathy for her. "She had a very promising career, which she seems to have ruined. I get no satisfaction from what's happened," he said.