A Co. Armagh man is accused of bombarding recruitment agency staff with sexually explicit e-mails and social media messages.
Mamadu Camara did not appear at Lisburn Magistrates’ Court last week as he is being held in quarantine in Maghaberry prison but defence counsel Neil Moore lodged a bail application on behalf of the 21-year-old.
Originally from Burkina Faso Camara, with an address at Churchill Park in Portadown, faces a total of eight charges including three counts of harassment, three counts of persistent improper use of a telecommunication network and single counts of criminal damage and possessing a weapon, all committed between 7 April and 22 July this year.
A prosecuting outlined how the three victims, two women and a man, all worked for a recruitment agency which Camara “was signed up to” when a dispute arose over holiday pay.
Sending them a multitude of messages “by e-mail and text and Facebook and social media” with many of the messages “sexually orientated…and very explicit,” the lawyer told the court, adding that Camara “believed that he was in some sort of relationship” with one of the women.
Worryingly, Camara was spotted in the drive way of her house “taking pictures of her car and posting them online.”
Objecting to Camara being freed, the lawyer said the defendant posed a significant risk of fight as he had told police “he would go back to Portugal” once freed from police custody.
“He is entitled to reside here until September 2025 but we believe there’s a risk of flight and a risk of further offending given the very explicit nature of the offences,” she told the court.
Conceding it was a “very difficult application,” Mr Moore highlighted that he had a clear record and suggested that he could be freed to live in an approved hostel outside of the Portadown area.
Suggesting that Camara’s mistaken belief he was in a relationship with one of the complainants could be down to “cultural differences,” he revealed Camara engaged in “behaviour which was more than unusual” while in police custody.
Despite the submissions, District Judge Alan White said simply “I have no intention of granting bail…there’s a serious risk of further offences.”
Camara’s case was adjourned to 20 August.
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