A DELUDED stalker who targeted his victim just days after being released from prison for harassing her is back behind bars.

Raymond Coglan, who has a long history of violence towards women, became ‘obsessed’ with his latest victim after they became friends but he turned aggressive after she rejected his unwanted sexual advances.

The 36-year-old turned up at his victim's workplace less than two weeks after his release and was seen to make sexually suggestive movements towards the woman before making a telephone call hand gesture, Teesside Crown Court heard.

Emma Atkinson, prosecuting, said Coglan then bombarded his target with dozens of unwanted calls leaving her fearing for her safety.

She told the court that the defendant had been jailed for 48 weeks in February this year after he threw bricks at her home and threatened to pour petrol through her letter box after she rejected him on Christmas Eve when he told her he was 'feeling frisky'.

Miss Atkinson said he was released on licence on May 11 and 12 days later he was ignored his restraining order and turned up at the shop where she worked.

"She was at work when she saw the defendant outside," she said. "He banged on the window and made telephone gestures towards her and then made sexual gestures towards her. He called her seven times later that day."

The defendant turned up at her house the following day banging on the door before bombarding her with 38 calls or texts.

She added: "He sent her one message saying 'I'm on the run now, I hope you're happy now.'"

The victim who had never been in a relationship with Coglan said his stalking had impacted on her personal and work life.

In a victim impact statement, the victim said: "The way Raymond Coglan has behaved towards me, even though I thought I was protected from him by the restraining order, has had a detrimental affect on my life."

The court heard he also had previous convictions for similar offences against other women.

Coglan, of Forcett Street, Darlington, pleaded guilty to stalking and breach of a restraining order following his arrest in May.

Simon Perkins, representing Coglan, urged the judge to take into account that the victim had not been physically hurt by his client when he sentenced him.

Judge Stephen Ashurst jailed the defendant for 16 months for the breach of his restraining order and extended it to five years and passed a concurrent four month sentence for stalking.

He said: "You turned up at her home; you turned up at her work; you made hand gestures towards her; you called her not two or three times but 120 times including sending text messages and other messages.

"This was a persistent breach of your restraining order.

"You have shown yourself to be obsessed with her and you simply didn't get the message that your advance are unwanted."