A fitness instructor wrongly accused a married father of rape after he broke off their affair to get back together with his wife.
Rebecca Hooper, 43, bugged another gym-goer’s car and bombarded him with insults on social media when he ended their ‘casual’ affair.
Her partner Brian Townsend, 47, also stalked the father-of-two’s family after finding messages between the pair.
He even made abusive phone calls accusing him of being a rapist and went to his house to tell his daughter that her father was a “sexual predator.”
Now the pair have avoided jail after being given a 16-month suspended sentence and a ten-year restraining order following a trial at Newport Crown Court.
Fitness instructor Rebecca Hooper (pictured) wrongly accused a married father of rape after he ended their affair to get back together with his wife
Hooper pictured with her husband Brian Townsend, 47, who also took part in the stalking campaign
According to prosecutor Christopher Evans, Hooper and the older man met at the Bridgend Life gym, where she worked as a fitness instructor, and began a “casual relationship”.
The victim broke off the “friends with benefits” arrangement after he returned to his wife.
Hooper began bombarding the man with messages encouraging him to continue the affair, scouring his Facebook pages and posting comments on old photos.
She even sent a friend request to his wife after he blocked her on social media and WhatsApp. Then she sent her a letter accusing her husband of being a rapist.
She made this accusation to the police, who arrested him but took no further action.
The married father of two also suffered a flat tire on his van and Hooper was seen fitting a tracking device to the vehicle.
Mr Evans said: ‘This behaviour caused him a lot of stress and paranoia. He was constantly on guard.
‘He began taking different routes and making his trips longer than usual. He deactivated social media accounts so the suspects could not contact him and stopped going to the pool, gym and his son’s rugby matches.
“He and his family were deeply affected by the complaint of rape.”
Hooper and Townsend, of Bryntirion, Bridgend, initially denied any wrongdoing but both later pleaded guilty to stalking.
In a statement to the court, the victim said: ‘The past 12 months have been hell for me and my family. The suffering we face today and in the future.
‘I don’t think we will ever recover from this horrific crime – something I never wanted to experience.
‘Emotionally I am broken – my family is broken. I wake up in hot sweats, have trouble sleeping and am always paranoid and worried about my family.
The pair were given a 16-month suspended sentence and a 10-year restraining order following a trial at Newport Crown Court (pictured).
“I’m afraid they’ll show up at the front door. I make sure the windows and doors in our homes are locked.
‘We feel like prisoners in our own home and our own community. I avoid the Bridgend area because I’m afraid of seeing Rebecca and Brian.
“She accused me of rape – that’s not true and that was reflected in the outcome of that investigation, but it will stick like mud. It breaks my heart every day to worry about what people might say as a result of their actions.”
Giles Hayes, defending Hooper, said she was “unable” to cope with the ending of the affair.
Judge Neil Owen-Casey said Hooper ‘reacted extremely to the breakdown of a relationship’.
He ordered them to pay £500 compensation and £150 costs, in addition to the suspended prison sentences and restraining orders.