Ex-taxi driver mounted campaign of harassment against former boss

John Tohill (69), of Pinetree Manor in Dunmurry, pleaded guilty at Antrim Magistrates Court, sitting in Ballymena, on Tuesday (March 1), to a charge of harassment relating to February 2019 to August 2020.

A prosecutor said the a man received a “high volume of silent calls” to his mobile phone from a private number which often would be up to five in a 24 hour period including in the early hours or middle of the night.

The man told police when he answered he could “hear breathing but no words were spoken”.

The court heard he was caused “anxiety and distress” and when he complained to his mobile phone network they were able to “isolate” the number.

Tohill, a former employee of the man, was identified by police.

When interviewed, Tohill admitted he made the calls “in order to cause him annoyance”.

Tohill said he had worked for the man for 22 years as a taxi driver and 15 years ago he had taken a stroke and his job was “replaced within a few days which caused him great upset”.

Tohill, the prosecutor said, also told police his former boss “never enquired as to how he was doing after this”.

The court heard the defendant had a previously clear record.

A defence lawyer said it was “very sad and unfortunate that his working career” had ended in such a way.

He added: “There was a friendship there as well as an employer employee relationship which had lasted for 22 years and there was a sense of an historic grievance having felt that he had been poorly treated by his employer and in particular how after termination of work there was no follow-up or contact between two erstwhile friends”.

The lawyer said the calls were “silent in nature and weren’t threatening” but Tohill accepts they were “designed to cause annoyance”.

Tohill, the court heard, was “fully apologetic” when interviewed.

The court was told Probation assess him as a “low likelihood of reoffending”.

The defence lawyer said it was a “fairly unique set of circumstances”.

District Judge Nigel Broderick said Tohill had been “torturing” his old employer with the calls.

The judge told the defendant: “I hope you now realise that what you did was totally unacceptable. Whatever your sense of grievance you embaraked upon a course of conduct which was clearly set out to cause him anxiety.

“This was a prolonged campaign. Anyone who gets silent phone calls during the night and they can hear somebody breathing on the phone I can fully understand how that would cause any recipient great anxiety and worry.”

Given the length of time which had elapsed since Tohill left the taxi job, the judge said it had probably been difficult to suspect the calls were from Tohill but “thankfully you were identified”.

Judge Broderick added it was a “serious matter” in which the former employer was “entirely blameless in these set of facts”.

Tohill was given a five months jail sentence, suspended for three years; he was made the subject of a three year Restraining Order and he was also ordered to pay the victim £500 compensation.