Woman in court after messaging ex-boyfriend’s dog

A woman was sent to court after she breached a non-molestation order by contacting her her ex-boyfriend's dog on Facebook.

Paula Higham, 37, from Aigburth, Merseyside, allegedly threatened to murder Mark Davies and told his mother she was 'looking rough', The Liverpool Echo reports.

Liverpool Crown Court was told yesterday (August 11) that Higham had been in a 'turbulent' relationship with Davies for around four years, which inspired her to go 'on a campaign of harassment'.

She was banned from contacting him for a year last August.

Despite the ban, Higham reportedly engaged in a 'persistent breach' of the order and sent a series of 'deeply unpleasant' messages and calls.

Liverpool Echo

She sent 13 messages from two different Facebook accounts a week after the order was imposed on August 25, 2021.

One of the offensive messages sent to the dog's Facebook account read: "What's happened to your mum? She's looking very rough. She will be looking worse soon."

"Enjoy your weekend," added another. "I've posted your name and address over the internet, rapist."

The 37-year-old also sent abusive messages via a withheld phone number.

In one call on September 21, she played a song on the phone before calling Davies at 2 am on another date and accusing him of rape.

"Now you really are f***ed," she said. "You just went viral by the way."

Higham described her ex-boyfriend as a 'f***ing freak' before adding: 'I'm going to kill you, I'm going to kill you."

She was arrested in January by a plain clothes police officer.

Higham repeatedly told the court during yesterday's evening that her ex-boyfriend was a 'sex offender'.

Oliver Saddington, defending, said that Higham is seeking a restraining order against Davis.

The Liverpool Echo

The defence added: "The relationship between her and Mr Davies is still in some flux and there are some difficulties. She has worked as a sex worker for much of her life to fund her crippling drug addiction.

"She has worked, since December last year, to address her addictions. She wants to continue on the path of abstinence. She knows this will be her very last chance, and if she did breach she would go to prison. It's the last chance saloon for her in many aspects."

The 37-year-old was handed a one-year prison sentence suspended for 18 months, as well as 100 hours of unpaid work and must complete a 20-day rehabilitation activity.

Recorder Tim Harrington, sentencing, said: "I'm going to take a chance on you because I think you have made some positive steps. You have had a troubled life, and you have a bad record.

"You have made real efforts. It's down to you Ms Higham - if you do as you're told and keep out of trouble, you won't have to serve this sentence."

She was given a five-year restraining order too and ordered to pay a victim surcharge to her ex-boyfriend.

This was not Higham's first brush with the law, and she has 17 prior convictions for 56 offences including the assault of an emergency services worker in 2015.