Man harassed Bury St Edmunds shop worker

A judge has ordered a man who harassed a Bury St Edmunds shop worker to undergo treatment for his mental health issues.

Steven Weinling, 28, followed the woman after she finished work at a shop in the town and was spotted in the grounds of the development where she lived.

Ipswich Crown Court heard on Monday that Weinling, of Bishops Stortford, told another member of staff at the store that he was fantasising about the woman. When police asked Weinling what he was doing following the woman he claimed to have been been using his phone to play Pokemon Go.

Jamie Sawyer, in mitigation, said his client had mental health issues for which he had received some help. Weinling pleaded guilty to harassment between June and September last year.

Judge Martyn Levett imposed a two year community order with a requirement to obtain mental health treatment. Weinling was banned from going to the shop or near the woman’s home.