A Haverfordwest man has been given a custodial sentence after sending persistent text and Facebook messages to two previous partners, despite a court restraining order which prevented him from doing so.

Gareth Roberts, 30, sent the messages within hours of being released from custody, after being convicted of assault and intentional strangulation.

Roberts of Hawthorne Rise, Haverfordwest, sent persistent messages to two previous partners, despite being the subject of a restraining order which prevented him from communicating either directly or indirectly with both women.

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“When he was released from prison on October 5, the defendant made immediate contact with them,” said Crown Prosecutor, Ben Williams.

“This has clearly had an effect on both victims as it’s made them feel very uneasy. They fear he won’t hold back on anything, they’re afraid of bumping into him in the street and they’re afraid of what he’ll do to them. He’s unpredictable.

“They’re also concerned about other people who he may be looking for, including previous partners.”

Within hours of being released from custody, Roberts began making immediate contact with his two previous partners.

“Using Facebook messenger he said ‘I need to speak. No police. I want to say sorry’,” said Ben Williams.

“A total of 15 calls were made on Facebook messenger and these were screenshot by the victim, despite being deleted by the defendant.”

Mr Williams went on to say that additional messages were sent, supposedly by the defendant’s mother.

“But the victims didn’t believe this - they knew it was him.”

Roberts pleaded guilty to two charges of breaching the restraining order which was made by Llanelli magistrates in March 2022.

He was represented in court by Mr Tom Lloyd.

“He knows he shouldn’t have contacted them but he’ll never, ever make this mistake again,” said Mr Lloyd.

“He’s desperate to get back into the community following his release from prison but at the time of these offences, he was completely on his own.

"So what does he do? He drinks alcohol and contacts these two individuals, simply to make amends.”

After considering the evidence at length, magistrates imposed an eight month prison sentence on Roberts offences.

 “These are so serious that only an immediate prison custody is justified,” said the presiding magistrate.