A mother-of-three has revealed how her stalking ex-boyfriend hid in her loft for ten days after she broke up with him.
For a year, Ben Gould, 29, subjected Hayley Smith, 37, to a campaign of harassment.
He bombarded her with texts and calls, waited her outside her home, and even hid in her caravan.
When the police couldn't locate Gould, they issued a warrant for his arrest, before eventually discovering that he was hiding in Hayley's loft - where he'd been for ten days.
In January 2020, Gould pleaded guilty to stalking and was handed a 20-week suspended sentence.
Now Hayley, from Cornwall, is speaking out to raise awareness of stalking.
Hayley says: "Ben made my life hell. Knowing he was hiding in my house for days makes my skin crawl.
"I'm still scared of bumping into him. Stalking needs to be taken much more seriously."
In November 2018, Hayley matched with Gould on dating site Plenty of Fish, and found herself attracted to the fact he was a parent and dog lover too.
The pair went on a date to the pub and quickly hit it off, with Hayley soon introducing him to her children.
"He was great with them and they adored him," she said.
In June 2019, Gould, who was living with his mum at the time, moved in with Hayley while he looked for somewhere to live.
He was a doting stepdad to Hayley's kids and for a while things were good until Gould's ex messaged the mum, revealing he'd been living with her when they met.
"I was heartbroken," Hayley said.
"After I confronted him, he denied it but I didn't believe him, so ended things."
Over the next week, Gould bombarded Hayley with texts, begging for her forgiveness.
To take her mind off things, she spent time at friends' houses.
The following month, while Hayley watched TV in her living room, she spotted Gould outside.
She says: "He approached the house and then started throwing stones at the window.
"Terrified, I loaded the kids into the car and drove to my mum's house."
When she arrived she received a text from Gould, it was photographs of her friends' homes.
It was then Hayley realised he'd been stalking her.
She continued: "Ben then messaged asking where my dogs were. I raced home and my Rottweiler, Odin, was nowhere to be seen.
"Ben had taken him. I drove to his ex's and confronted him. But he denied it."
While they argued, Gould pulled his car behind Hayley's, blocking her in before throwing stones at her windscreen.
Terrified, Hayley called the police.
Hayley says: "When I arrived home, Ben called to say he'd found Odin in the road. I knew he was lying.
"Thankfully I picked him up and he was unharmed."
Officers attended but said they couldn't charge Gould as they didn't have enough evidence.
After that, Hayley blocked Gould, but he continued to ring her from unknown numbers.
In August 2019, worried for her and her children's safety, she decided to pack a bag in case she needed to flee.
Hayley says: "One evening, I got some things together and went to put them in the caravan.
"But as I opened the door, I spotted Ben sat on the bunk bed. Panicked, I screamed at him to get out.
"I grabbed the kids and bundled them into the car, speeding away."
Afterwards, Hayley invented her own safety measure to feel more secure.
She had a code phrase for the children in case they were ever in danger and in December, Hayley received a call from her eldest daughter.
She says: "She called me and asked, 'Do the dogs need feeding'? Instantly I knew something was wrong. So I sped home."
Hayley discovered Gould had been in the house and demanded to know where she was, leaving her daughter petrified.
The police were called but when they searched the house, Gould was nowhere to be found.
Minutes later, Hayley received a text from him.
She says: "Ben messaged telling me he was watching me. I was convinced he was in the house. But officers couldn't locate him."
A warrant was issued for Gould's arrest but over the next ten days, he continued to message Hayley.
When the police returned and searched Hayley's home again, they discovered where the ex-boyfriend had been hiding.
She said: "When they told me he'd been hiding in the loft, I couldn't believe it.
"Knowing he'd been so close to me and my kids sent shivers down my spine.
"Thankfully he was arrested then and there."
Two weeks later, Hayley was granted a non-molestation order against Gould, banning him from contacting her for three years.
But days later, while Hayley was parked up in her car, Gould jumped in the passenger seat.
She says: "He begged for me back. Terrified he was going to hurt me, I kept calm.
"For five hours, Ben tried to convince me to give him another chance. Eventually he gave up and went home."
Hayley called the police and he was arrested.
In January 2020, Gould pleaded guilty to stalking at Bodmin Magistrates' Court.
He received a 20-week suspended sentence and was handed a three-year restraining order.
Hayley says: "It wasn't enough for what he'd put me and the kids through. Psychologically I'll never recover from the ordeal.
"Much more needs to be done to protect women from monsters like him."
