Obsessed Emily Maitlis stalker jailed for breaching restraining order
Mr Malone told the jury during the trial that Vines wrote a letter addressed to Ms Maitlis, who co-hosts The News Agents podcast, which said: 'I took the audacity of writing to you despite the restraining order because I'm still distraught about what took place between us in 1990.
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Wales Online
2 days ago
- Wales Online
Man obsessed with BBC's Emily Maitlis is jailed for five years
Man obsessed with BBC's Emily Maitlis is jailed for five years Ms Maitlis described her husband finding Vines on their doorstep, her children needing to be escorted to the school bus, and 'upsetting interactions' with her 92-year-old mother Emily Maitlis, British journalist, documentary filmmaker, and former newsreader for the BBC An obsessed serial stalker of former BBC Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis has been jailed for five years after breaching his restraining order by sending the broadcaster and her parents letters from prison. Nottingham Crown Court heard that Edward Vines was 'distraught' that his friendship with Ms Maitlis ended three months after he told her he loved her while they were at university in Cambridge together, but his offending since has made Ms Maitlis feel 'vulnerable and worried'. Vines, who refused to attend his sentencing hearing on Thursday, sent envelopes, sometimes containing more than one letter, addressed to Ms Maitlis and her relatives which were intercepted by prison staff at HMP Lowdham Grange in Nottinghamshire, where he was serving a sentence for previous harassment. The 55-year-old, who represented himself in the trial, denied three counts of breaching a restraining order and one count of attempting to breach a restraining order between May 2023 and February 2024 but was convicted of all offences by a jury in May. He addressed more than 20 letters to Ms Maitlis and her family over a 10-month period and phoned his brother in July 2023 asking him to contact her mother Marion Maitlis. The court heard that Vines has 13 previous convictions for 28 offences dating back to 2002 'almost all of which concern harassment or breach of a restraining order' relating to Ms Maitlis. In a short victim personal statement read to the court by prosecutor Fergus Malone, Ms Mailtis wrote: 'For over 30 years I have been living with the consequences of the persistent and unwanted attention of this individual. I feel especially vulnerable and worried when the matter comes to trial. The idea that he might be bailed is deeply worrying and I would be very concerned for my safety and the safety of my family.' Ms Maitlis also described her husband finding Vines on their doorstep, her children needing to be escorted to the school bus, and 'upsetting interactions' with her 92-year-old mother. Part of an interview she did with Radio 5 Live in 2018 was also read to the court, in which she described feeling 'paranoia' and said the harassment feels like a 'chronic illness'. Sentencing Vines in his absence, Judge Mark Watson said: 'It is a tragedy that I once again have to deal with Edward Vines for breaking the restraining order imposed to stop him having contact with Emily Maitlis and her family. He has shown complete contempt for this order. His contact with her is harassment of her whatever the content of his letters may be. Article continues below 'In this case she (Ms Maitlis) has been fearful for three decades. In 2018 she described the effects of the fear she felt as a result of Edward Vines's behaviour. It was described by her as like a chronic illness. Because of the history of this case, I regard each single letter as a very serious breach. These were also letters that did not get through. They were not threatening or meant as abusive. 'I do accept that because of his mental health issues there is some reduction to his culpability. He was, however, capable of making rational decisions. He is a very bright and articulate man – he could have been many things. His obsession with Emily Maitlis has tortured him without release. 'He has wasted more than two decades of his life and regrettably he is set to waste more of it in custody.' The judge added that Vines's imprisonment is the 'only thing stopping him from contacting the Maitlis family directly'. Mr Malone told the jury during the trial that Vines wrote a letter addressed to Ms Maitlis, who co-hosts The News Agents podcast, which said: 'I took the audacity of writing to you despite the restraining order because I'm still distraught about what took place between us in 1990. 'I regularly suffer depression over it and have for 30 years. I admit I'm not sure why I suffer so, but suffer I do.' Article continues below The restraining order was put in place on September 5 2022 when Vines was convicted of eight counts of breaching a restraining order and he was jailed for eight years.
Evening Standard
2 days ago
- Evening Standard
Obsessed Emily Maitlis stalker jailed for breaching restraining order
Mr Malone told the jury during the trial that Vines wrote a letter addressed to Ms Maitlis, who co-hosts The News Agents podcast, which said: 'I took the audacity of writing to you despite the restraining order because I'm still distraught about what took place between us in 1990.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Emily Maitlis' serial stalker is jailed for five years for another breach of a restraining order after sending letters to her from prison
A serial stalker who sent letters to Emily Maitlis and her parents from behind bars was jailed this morning for five years. Vines - who had briefly become friends with Ms Maitlis while they were both students at Cambridge University in 1990 - has repeatedly breached orders banning him from contacting the journalist and broadcaster and was in prison for similar offences. Judge Mark Watson told a court Vines had shown 'utter comptempt' for a restraining order and added: 'It is a tragedy that I once again have to deal with Mr Vines for breaching the restraining order imposed to stop him having contact with Emily Maitlis and her family. 'His obsession with Emily Maitlis has tortured him without release.' Vines was last month found guilty of breaching a restraining order not to contact the former BBC Newsnight host or her parents Marion and Peter Maitlis by posting letters whilst in prison to all three between May 2023 and February 2024. A jury at Nottingham Crown Court took less than an hour to unanimously convict Vines after a trial in which he represented himself. The trial was told how the prisoner addressed letters to the The News Agents podcast host and her parents which breached a restraining order, including claims she had been 'scornful' to him during their friendship at university. Jurors were told that in a letter written to Ms Maitlis, the defendant claimed he 'regularly' suffers depression because their friendship ended, and has done for 30 years. A jury heard how the defendant sent envelopes, sometimes containing more than one letter, addressed to the trio, which were intercepted by prison staff at HMP Lowdham Grange in Nottinghamshire. Prosecutor Fergus Malone read aloud letters to the court, posted by Vines through the prison mailing system, which included him saying he was 'distraught' about the friendship ending, three months after he told Ms Maitlis he loved her, during their time at university. In July 2023 Vines wrote: 'I took the audacity of writing to you despite the restraining order because I'm still distraught about what took place between us in 1990. 'I regularly suffer depression over it and have for 30 years. I admit I'm not sure why I suffer so, but suffer I do.' In a letter addressed to Ms Maitlis's mother in May of that year, Vines had described Ms Maitlis as 'offish and scornful', the trial heard. The restraining order was put in place in September 2022 when Vines was jailed for eight years for attempting to breach a previous restraining order for the 20th time. Jurors in that case were told that Vines had 'systematically and with increasing frequency' breached two separate restraining orders imposed on him in 2002 and 2009 - leading to seven separate prosecutions. On that occasion Judge Watson described him as having a 'tortured pre-occupation' with former BBC Newsnight presenter and 'an obsession' with her which he has been unable to escape. Vines was jailed for eight years in 2023 after bombarding the News Agents presenter with letters following a fixation that has spanned since the pair attended Cambridge University together in the 1990s. Other celebrities who have suffered from stalkers in recent years include actress Claire Foy, broadcaster Isla Traquair and radio and TV star Jeremy Vine. Ms Maitlis conducted the infamous Newsnight interview with Prince Andrew which led to the Duke of York stepping back from official public duties after being criticised for his unsympathetic tone and lack of remorse about his friendship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Last year she said she felt 'empathy' for Vines because he is suffering from an 'obsessional illness'. She has also said that stalking needs to be renamed as it is too closely associated with glamour and celebrities, rather than mental health. News Agents presenters Jon Sopel, Emily Maitlis and Lewis Goodall pictured at a podcast event in London two years ago Ms Maitlis said we should re-frame how we look at such criminal behaviour and see it as an 'obsessional illness'. Speaking on the Desperately Seeking Wisdom podcast, she said: 'Look, I think of (Edward Vines) as having kind of lost his whole life over this, quite frankly. 'Of course I feel, I feel empathetic to that. 'I think the trouble with stalking is that in our heads it sounds sort of celebrity related or glamorous - sort of dark streets and high heels - and most stalking has nothing to do with that. 'It's just to do with an obsessional illness in the head of the person and actually we're getting much better at recognising mental health and all its myriad forms now.' Ms Maitlis said she does not like the use of the word stalking, in general, and said it was time to consider a different term that focuses it being a medical illness. She explained: 'And I think we've got to find a different word for stalking, which is much more to do with his brain (not) working properly. 'I know that you don't just need a prison system. You need a psychiatric system.' Ms Maitlis has previously told how Vines' fixation with her has affected her relationship with husband Mark Gwynne. Ms Maitlis said: 'It has affected my relationship with my husband who is frustrated we cannot get to the bottom of the problem even though we have been tackling it through the courts and CPS for over twenty years and it has scared my children who thought the threat had gone way - albeit temporarily while he was behind bars.'
