AN ISLE of Wight man who flouted the terms of a restraining order  — falsely accusing a woman of breaking into his room and trashing it — faces the prospect of having his suspended jail sentence activated.

Benjamin Gothard-Smith, of Hunnyhill, Newport, admitted breaching a restraining order, on December 13, 2023.

On April 4, 2023, Gothard-Smith was handed a five-year restraining order not to contact a named woman, together with an order jailing him for 15 months, suspended for two years, for malicious communication, causing criminal damage, public disorder and possession of a class B drug.

Last month (December), a woman contacted police to report Gothard-Smith was outside her window and had "threatened to smash her head in," said Tim Devlin, prosecuting, at the Isle of Wight Crown Court.

On December 22, Gothard-Smith told police the woman had broken into his room and trashed it.

The 41-year-old had sent the woman a text, accusing her of burglary and smashing his place up, with a warning she was "going to get kicked out" of her room, court heard.

When police investigated the incident, they discovered text messages between the pair and he was arrested.

At Newport Police Station, Gothard-Smith gave "no comment" responses when questioned, but admitted the offence when he appeared before magistrates, the following day.

Gothard-Smith appeared with a criminal record of 25 convictions for 64 offences, dating back to 1998.

For Gothard-Smith, Oscar Vincent said police officers attended his address for the burglary, but instead focussed their attentions on the text messages he sent the complainant, and the breach of the restraining order.

In court, on Tuesday, January 23, judge, David Melville, told Gothard-Smith he had been texting when he was not supposed to and fell into the trap of answering a text.

He allowed the suspended sentence order to continue, but fined Gothard-Smith £100, with no order for costs.