Harassment case verdict reversed (From Daily Echo)
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Harassment case verdict reversed
11:40am Tuesday 12th March 2013 in News
By Emma Streatfield, Senior Reporter
William Allen.
A HAMPSHIRE man has successfully appealed against a conviction for harassing his estranged wife.
A judge and two magistrates sitting at Winchester Crown Court overturned the guilty verdict on William Allen, 38.
He had been convicted of harassing now ex-wife Daniella van Ek after a two-day trial last year, which heard how he had exposed her work as an escort online.
A restraining order banning Mr Allen from contacting Miss van Ek or publishing information about her remains in force.
Costs that Mr Allen, formerly of Walpole Road, Stanmore, Winchester, paid to the court are to be returned.
At the original trial, held at Andover and Aldershot magistrates’ courts in January last year, Mr Allen admitted setting up a series of websites from October 2010 exposing Miss van Ek’s work as an escort and dominatrix.
They included pictures of her in various states of undress alongside family photographs taken at the couple’s wedding and linked her real name to aliases that she used for work.
Mr Allen had told the magistrates’ courts it had been part of their marriage agreement that Miss van Ek would stop escort work and that she had told him she wasn’t working so said it could not harm her business.
He had said at the trial that although separated he did not consider the marriage over and that they had a responsibility to remain faithful.
He told the trial that he had not meant to be abusive and denied it was designed to hurt Miss van Ek or that it put her at risk.
When asked for comment by the Daily Echo, Mr Allen said he wanted to thank his solicitor Louisa Hollely from Shentons for being so professional and his barrister Scott Stemp for providing an excellent service.
