Man jailed for stalking Chester MP

A man who stalked the Member of Parliament for Chester has been jailed.

Benjamin Scott-Thrale appeared at Warrington Magistrates Court on Friday 12 April 2024 where he was sentenced to 6 weeks imprisonment.  The courts also issued a two year restraining order and a 12 month post sentence supervision he must comply with.

The 32-year-old of Griffin Close, Chester, was found guilty of Stalking involving serious alarm / distress.

During the trial at Warrington Magistrates Court, the court heard how Scott-Thrale had first contacted their MP for help regarding an ongoing legal dispute.

The victim and her team did what they could to assist Scott-Thrale, but when they informed him there wasn’t anything more they could do, his communications became increasingly threatening and intimidating.

Dissatisfied with the response, Scott-Thrale began making multiple attempts to contact the victim via calls and emails, demanding that she intervene in his situation.

It was clear in June 2023 that Scott-Thrale was not going to stop until he got the outcome he wanted, despite there being nothing further his MP could do for him.

Scott-Thrale’s contact continued to be of a threatening nature towards his MP, resulting in him being spoken to by officers in August 2023 and warned to cease all attempts to contact, but he was not deterred.

The threats and barrage of abuse continued, and on Wednesday 24 January 2024, Scott-Thrale attended the victim’s constituency office demanding to see her.

On Tuesday 20 February 2024, officers attended Scott-Thrale’s home address and he was arrested on suspicion of Stalking and remanded into custody.

Despite Scott-Thrale admitting all of the attempts to contact the victim, he plead not guilty to the charge of Stalking.

Despite his denial, Warrington Magistrates Court found him guilty.

Following the sentencing, PC Morgan Bower, of Cheshire Constabulary’s Harm Reduction Unit, said:

“Scott-Thrale became fixated on the victim and chose to intimidate her when not getting the outcome he wanted.

“Scott-Thrale reached out to the victim for help with his legal dispute, and she did all she could to assist him, before informing him that sadly there were no further ways she could help on numerous occasions.

“Instead of expressing appreciation for her and her team’s time and efforts trying their best to assist him, Scott-Thrale chose to view this as an injustice against him, and embarked upon a campaign of abuse, bombarding her with emails, calls, and turning up at her office.

“Scott-Thrale has shown no remorse for his actions throughout the course of this investigation or any appreciation for how his actions affected the victim and her team.  Scott-Thrale has now been held accountable for his actions and I welcome sentence handed by the courts.

“This case highlights how anyone can become a victim of stalking, and the psychological and emotional impact it can have on those it affects. This type of behaviour will not be tolerated in Cheshire, and I hope that anyone who thinks they may be a victim of this crime to come forward.”

Throughout the investigation the victim was supported by Specialist Victim Advocates within the Harm Reduction Unit who support victims through the criminal justice process.

The Harm Reduction Unit is a specialist risk management service delivered by Cheshire Constabulary in conjunction with Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and the Probation Service.

Since October 2023 the Harm Reduction Unit has included a dedicated investigation team taking primacy for the most serious and complex stalking investigations.