A MAN who breached a court order by bombarding his former partner at Chard with phone calls and voicemail messages over a two week period has appeared before magistrates at Yeovil.

Michael Mullins had been made subject to a non-molestation order by Taunton Family Court to keep away from the victim.

However over the course of several weeks he made what the prosecution claimed to be up to 100 phone calls and left around 50 unwanted voicemail messages causing her distress.

Mullins, 28, of Meadow Valley, Fareham, Portsmouth, appeared in the dock before Somerset Magistrates.

He pleaded guilty that between September 8 and 29 at Chard he breached a non-molestation order made on May 31 in that he harassed and pestered his former partner by sending her phone calls and voicemails.

Prosecutor Lindsey Baker said that Mullins had pleaded guilty on a basis that he had only telephoned the victim 20 times and left her a total of eight voicemails.

This was not accepted by the prosecution, although Miss Baker conceded that it would not make a material difference to sentencing.

She said that a number of the calls went unanswered but the victim did respond to a handful of them.

She said that on one day alone – September 7 – there were a total of 30 phone calls and a further 15 on September 9.

The court heard that the defendant was currently subject to a community order previously imposed by the courts on August 31.

Defending solicitor Ray Peters said that clearly a pre-sentence report from the Probation Service was needed in this case and asked for the matter to be adjourned to enable that to take place.

He was ordered to return to the court on November 22 and in the meantime was given unconditional bail.