Stalker 'likely to strike again'

Police say Basterfield is "highly dangerous"

The chief constable of Tayside Police believes it is "almost inevitable" that a convicted serial stalker will strike again, a court has heard.

John Vine is seeking a Sexual Offences Protection Order against sex offender Robert Basterfield.

The order would ban Basterfield from having solo contact with any woman in Scotland for 10 years without their express permission.

Basterfield's defence team branded the order as "draconian".

Mr Vine's counsel, Barry Smith, said police believed he would strike again.

Mr Smith told Perth Sheriff Court there was "ample evidence" Basterfield would commit another sexually motivated offence against a lone female.

The psychiatric evidence is such that the prospects for the defender addressing his offending behaviour are not good Barry Smith, counsel for Tayside Police

He added that the police were acting to protect the public, and particularly lone females, from the possibility of "serious physical or psychological harm".

Basterfield, who is originally from Australia but now lives in Perth, has two previous convictions for stalking.

As a result, he was made the subject of an interim order banning him from being alone with any woman in Scotland.

He is also banned from doing any "recreational activity" - such as visiting a bar or cinema - without first gaining permission from his probation officer.

The unemployed 35-year-old was also jailed for four months after harassing Spanish waitress Maria Dominguez in Perth in 2006.

Tayside Police, who have described Basterfield as "highly dangerous", originally applied for a 30-year banning order but have reduced this to ten years.

Mr Smith told the court: "It is likely the offending behaviour will continue.

"There was ample evidence the complainer in each of the two offences were frightened and distressed by the defender's conduct."

'Social cues'

He added that in the case of Ms Dominguez, the court had heard that she had been so distressed that she had returned to Spain and not come back to the UK.

Mr Smith said: "He is unable to pick up normal social cues and is unable to understand why what he does is wrong," he told the court.

"The psychiatric evidence is such that the prospects for the defender addressing his offending behaviour are not good.

"It is likely he will commit a further Schedule 3 offence and that it is likely the victim of such offence will suffer serious psychological harm."

This is intended to be a draconian order which can only be applied in exceptional terms James MacDonald Defence counsel

But James MacDonald, counsel for Basterfield, said the action being sought by the police was "draconian" in the breadth of its terms.

"The order as craved is draconian," he said.

"This is intended to be a draconian order which can only be applied in exceptional terms."

Mr MacDonald added that it had to be demonstrated that Basterfield's victims had suffered diagnosable psychological trauma as a result of his actings.

And he added that speculating about his future actions was "something akin to the script of Minority Report."

Sheriff Lindsay Foulis will make his ruling at a later date.