A mother is planning to quit her job and home town after receiving numerous letters from an ex-lover who had been banned from contacting her.

Although the messages were not threatening, they have landed Chris Riley with a 12-month prison sentence for being in defiance of a court order.

Judge James O’Mahony told Riley, who now lives in East Street, Faversham, that the letters would have caused the victim’s “heartbeat to rise” and cause her “absolute misery”.

A court banned Riley last year from contacting his ex-lover and he has since been jailed for 21 months for assault.

The victim told the judge in a statement how the letters caused her to suffer panic attacks and has now quit her accountants job, put her Dover home up for sale and now plans to move away.

She said: “I feel like I am always looking over my shoulder and am now planning on leaving the town where I have lived all my life.

"He doesn’t seem to realise that I do not want anything to do with him.

“I have given up my job as an accountant and this will mean getting a new job.”

Riley, who was expected to be released from his earlier sentence in October, admitted five charges of breaching a court order.

Defence lawyer Phil Rowley said there had been “nothing threatening or aggressive or unpleasant” in the letters.

He added that Riley now plans to study maths and physics at the Open University and now accepted the relationship had finished.

The judge said: “I accept the letters were not violent nor direct but the effect on your victim was she was scared to leave her house alone.

"She suffered panic attacks and needed counselling.”