PSNI urge public not to ignore 'red flags' as man is charged with stalking following Coleraine incident

The advice was issued following an incident on Wednesday, May 14, when CID in Coleraine arrested and then overnight (Thursday, May 15) charged a 34-year-old man with stalking.

The man was due to appear at Coleraine court on Friday, May 16. As is normal procedure all charges are reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.

Detective Sergeant Higgins said: “We continue to issue a strong public message to not ignore the red flags of stalking behaviours.

“On Wednesday we received a stalking report from a local female and within a few hours CID had the alleged perpetrator in custody and later overnight charged him.

“This only serves to reiterate our commitment to tackling this insidious crime. Stalking will not be tolerated in our communities. Thousands of officers and staff have now been trained to recognise and respond to these crimes and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to bring offenders to justice.”

New legislation was introduced to Northern Ireland in April 2022 which criminalised stalking for the first time. Since then, up until March 31, 2025, the Police Service of Northern Ireland has made 521 arrests for stalking, resulting in 265 charges.

Since, October 2023, officers have also made four successful applications for a Stalking Protection Order to safeguard victims and put prohibitions on alleged perpetrator’s behaviours.

For more information on the red flags of stalking behaviours visit the Police Service’s website here: https://www.psni.police.uk/safety-and-support/keeping-safe/protecting-yourself/stalking-and-harassment