IPSWICH: A 78-year-old man has been handed a restraining order after harassing two people living near him for months.

Jeffrey Wolfe-Emery, of Tudor Place, Ipswich, pleaded guilty to two counts of harassment without violence when he appeared at South East Suffolk Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

He harassed neighbour Janet Pike between August 2012 and November 2012 by sending distressing letters to her via post or leaving them on her doorstep. He also sent letters and posted abusive notes about warden Jeffrey Flood on the housing complex’s noticeboard.

Sandra Dyer, prosecuting, said: “She (Mrs Pike) has been affected in lots of ways with crying, not eating and not sleeping because she was scared in case he tried to get into her flat.”

On another occasion, Wolfe-Emery put caustic powder on Mrs Pikes’s garden and killed her plants.

Evelyn Hicks, mitigating, said: “He accepts the case and that his actions would have caused harm, alarm and distress.”

Magistrate Cynthia Glinos said: “You ignored the obvious distress of the victims.”

Wolfe-Emery was handed a two-year conditional discharge as well as a two-year restraining order to protect Mrs Pike and Mr Flood. He was also ordered to pay £150 compensation to Mrs Pike, £100 to Mr Flood and make a contribution of £150 to prosecution costs.