Ballroom champion ‘harassed his former partner’ after love split
WOMAN TELLS TRIAL SHE WAS LEFT ‘VERY SCARED’ BY EX
A CHAMPION ballroom dancer has appeared in court charged with stalking after he allegedly bombarded his former dancefloor partner with texts, flowers and cards after they split up.
Manchester magistrates court heard Lee Donnelly, 36, sent the woman, who is in her 20s, numerous messages on WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram begging her to stay with him after she moved out following an argument on their way home from an awards event.
Over a six-week period, Mr Donnelly left poignant snaps of the couple together around their shared rented home and put up old Valentine’s cards to ‘remind them’ of their relationship, the court was told. He also left a CD containing intimate images of them having sex and changed the code on house alarm so it would be triggered when she entered, magistrates were told.
Mr Donnelly, from Rochdale, also set up a webcam so he could film the woman’s reaction when she found the pictures and CD, the court heard.
Prosecutors said Mr Donnelly would park his car near his ex’s grandparents’ home and turn up unannounced at her workplace.
The woman was said to have been left ‘very scared and threatened’ by her former partner’s alleged behaviour and called the police.
Mr Donnelly denies a charge of stalking without fear, alarm or distress.
Magistrates heard the pair met at a dance school in 2016 and began their romance six months later.
Prosecutor Lucy Bridge told the court they were put together for dancing events, but the woman said: “He was not always kind and respectful. People at the dance school admire him for his talent, but knew what he could be like.”
The court heard the relationship ended in June after the couple attended an awards ceremony. Mr Donnelly, a former worker for a delivery firm, started drinking beer while taking a bath ahead of the event, prosecutors said.
By the end of the evening, he was ‘slurring his words,’ the court heard.
The woman told magistrates: “There had been a presentation that afternoon, which we both won prizes at. After that we went to the pub, but he had quite a lot to drink, which puts me on edge so I was wary. I was against going to the pub.
“A retired policeman we know wanted to buy a round at the end of the night, but I was against that because Lee was slurring his words and I was worried he would get into trouble. “He went outside for a while and I went outside to see if he was okay. He was with a woman who didn’t look very happy with him, and her partner didn’t look happy with him either. I felt uncomfortable and I felt tension in the situation and everyone was encouraging him to leave. But he picked up a bottle on the table, which was my drink, and said ‘I’ll take this and drink it on the walk home.’
On the way home, he changed to a different him. He belittled me, shouted at me, telling me I am a ‘little bitch, how dare you tell me what to do.’”
The court heard the woman moved in briefly with a neighbour and then temporarily rekindled her relationship with Mr Donnelly after he apologised. Magistrates were told the woman then ended the romance for a good a week later and moved in with her grandparents, giving Mr Donnelly three weeks to leave their home. She went on: “He is very charismatic, but I felt towards the end it was quite emotionally abusive. I felt that I was becoming a different person because I lost all my confidence. It was a strain on me as a person.”
She added: “He text me trying to beg me to stay with him, that he didn’t mean what he said but I thought it was too far gone at this point, I was too damaged by it. I was just trying to get him to move on with his life. I wanted him to move on and support himself but the messages were too much. I said ‘please stop I have made my decision, I need you to leave me alone’ – but he did not leave me alone.”
She added: “He was leaving pictures of us printed out in the house and Valentine’s cards to remind me of our relationship. He left me a disc with images on it with us having intercourse so I was worried he would distribute them. It has made me feel very scared. Any noise I hear at night I am scared that it’s him.’’
Mr Donnelly, of Oldham Road, Rochdale, denied wrongdoing and told the trial: “She wasn’t quite happy that I had to split my time. She had me all to herself at the beginning and then we formed a relationship so I think she wanted me away from them and to be her exclusive dance partner. I thought about having a child with her a n d getting married, happily ever after. This one felt right.’’
Recalling the night of split, Mr Donnell told magistrates: “I drank alcohol in the bath before we went out and at the ceremony.
As the night went on, the bar was on last orders and [my ex] said to me that she wanted to go home and didn’t feel well. She had just bought a bottle and wasn’t going to drink it so I wanted to take it with us.
“But she took the pint off me and said she had enough and we were going home. I was embarrassed that she took the drink off me and I was slurring my words a bit. “I didn’t like getting orders that we had to go home. I said something along the lines of: ‘you are only f ****** 21 years old.’ I was annoyed and upset. I was frustrated that I am 36 and an adult and didn’t need babysitting – I felt insulted. I don’t recall saying the words ‘little bitch’ to her. I was distraught with myself with how I spoke to her.
“I was trying to fight for [her], I was not abusive towards her in messages. I was sad. I did everything on reason to show my depth of feeling for her. I just wanted to sort it out and fix things.
“I wanted my life [with her]. I’ve tried to be an adult about this.’’
The case was adjourned until next month, when magistrates are expected to return a verdict.
Proceeding