A 34-year-old man pleaded guilty to breaching a restraining order when he appeared at Exeter Magistrates’ Court.
Guy Webb, of Backshay Close, South Milton, appeared in court after sending his ex-girlfriend a friend request on Snapchat last December.
The court heard he was issued with a restraining order on November 20, 2025, with conditions not to contact his ex-partner after the breakdown of their four-year relationship. He is currently subject to a community order in relation to the original offences.
Webb, a self-employed electrician, has 28 previous convictions for 55 offences.
In a victim impact statement read to the court, the complainant said: “I really wish to move on… he frightens me so much to the point I cringe in fear every time my phone goes off in case it’s him and he wants to make my life hell again.”
Michaela Rose, mitigating, explained to magistrates that Webb had inadvertently added her on the social media platform, showing the bench the layout of her own Snapchat account.
“I’m not sure if you are familiar with Snapchat… Unfortunately, I do use it because I have an 18-year-old son who only communicates through Snapchat.”
Miss Rose explained that the app automatically connects with contacts saved to a user’s phone, and then highlights them as potential Snapchat friends.
“You can add someone and then retract it,” Miss Rose said. “That’s exactly what happened to the defendant; he inadvertently clicked it and then withdrew it… There was no direct contact whatsoever.”
Miss Rose described the relationship between the two parties as “toxic”.
Sentencing, magistrates said: “We are going to deal with this by way of fine. We would rather you focus on compliance with your current community order.
“It is clear to use that you tried to correct your error, but you still have to own the fact that you made that error.”
Magistrates imposed a fine of £393, as well as a victim surcharge of £157 and court costs of £150.
- This story was produced via the Police & Crime Commissioner’s Criminal Justice Court Reporting scheme.
