A firefighter has been banned from contacting his former girlfriend after he bombarded her with threatening and obscene text messages.

Nigel Foster was told by a Chelmsford Crown Court judge he will go to jail if he phones, texts or contacts the woman at any time within the next two years.

He was also told to pay 26-year-old Alexandra Perkins £500 for the distress he caused her.

"You bombarded this woman with messages of a grossly offensive and threatening nature for some six weeks. It was an appalling course of behaviour," Recorder David Turner QC told Foster.

Richard Livingstone, prosecuting, told the court that 35-year-old Foster could not accept the relationship was over when Miss Perkins ended it because he was violent to her.

"They agreed to stay friends and calls to the woman started off as friendly but in June last year, she started to receive text messages of a disgusting and threatening nature," Mr Livingstone said.

The messages, many sent in the early hours of the morning, continued despite Foster being warned off by police after Miss Perkins complained.

Foster, of Harvey Street, Halstead, told Miss Perkins in one message she could "run but not hide" from him and in another, the text read "I will pop up when you least expect it. Your life is going to be hell".

A total of 62 messages were sent before Foster, a firefighter at Heathrow Airport, was arrested, the court heard.

He had been committed to crown court for sentence by magistrates after admitting a charge of harassing Miss Perkins.

Apart from the compensation and restraining orders, Foster received a 12-month community rehabilitation order and a 60-hour community punishment order.

Mark Roochove, mitigating, said Foster was "utterly disgusted" by his behaviour.

It was no excuse, but at the time of many of the messages, Foster had been drinking, Mr Roochove said.

Published Monday January 14, 2002