A woman has been praised by Northumbria Police for her bravery after her stalker was jailed for five years.
The woman was stalked by Shuaib Muhammad, 31, in South Tyneside and received letters asking her to contact an unknown person and discovering her vehicle and property had been damaged.
In response, the victim installed CCTV, but Muhammed tampered with the security measures on numerous occasions. On several occasions, he was caught on CCTV, by the victim or her neighbours, peering through windows and loitering outside the property.
Over the course of Muhammad’s offending, the victim also received a number of phone calls from a withheld number which she answered to hear the sound of breathing down the line.
Detective Constable Rachel Hyde, from Northumbria Police’s Criminal Investigation Department led the case, and identified Muhammad as the prime suspect. She then matched the handwriting on one of the notes the victim retained to letters he had sent from his previous spell behind bars.
Muhammad, of Marshall Wallis Road, South Shields, was arrested on suspicion of stalking. On a search of his address, the investigation team recovered a jacket, two pairs of tracksuit bottoms and a stash of blue gloves – all of which he had been caught on CCTV wearing during several of the unwarranted visits to the victim’s home.
Shuaib Muhammad was caught multiple times on CCTV at the victim’s address
(Image: Northumbria Police)
Following a thorough and complex investigation, in March 2024 he was charged. He appeared at Newcastle Crown Court in May last year where he pleaded guilty to stalking.
On Tuesday, December 24, he appeared at the same court where he was jailed for five years. He will serve a licence period of three years once released from prison and he was also made subject of an indefinite restraining order preventing him from contacting the victim.
Detective Constable Hyde praised the victim for her bravery. She said: “The victim has been extremely brave throughout this whole process and has shown great composure. I know nothing can undo what she’s been through – but hopefully knowing Muhammad is now behind bars will help give her some form of closure.
“While stranger stalkings do occur, I would like to reassure the public that they are extremely rare. However, we would still like to raise awareness of the four signs of stalking. Ask yourself, is the behaviour you, or a loved one, experiencing fixated, obsessive, unwanted or repeated?
“If the answer to any of these is ‘yes’ then you may be a victim of stalking. If you need any help or support, please get in touch with police.”
For support, contact Northumbria Police by visiting the ‘Report’ pages of the website, or call 101. Report anonymously via Crimestoppers or visit a local police station.
For further independent advice and information on stalking and harassment, contact the Suzy Lamplugh National Stalking Helpline on 0808 802 0300 or search Suzy Lamplugh Trust online, Paladin Service, the Alice Ruggles Trust, or Protection Against Stalking.
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