Sentence: 26 months imprisonment
Colin Cooper, aged 35, of Waterside Gardens in Bolton, developed a grudge against pizzeria owner Daniel Johnstone following a Facebook argument about comments on the Southport Food Forum. Between March and December 2024, he conducted a campaign of harassment including unwanted phone calls, damaging the 600 Degrees pizzeria on Sandon Road in Southport by smashing a window with a brick on November 11, 2024, spray painting graffiti on three occasions in December 2024, attacking the frontage with a tool on August 12, 2024 (repairs £600), and with a hammer on September 4, 2024. He slashed Johnstone's car tyres on September 29, 2024, outside his home, ordered eight uncollected pizzas in September 2024 using a linked phone number, posted fake negative reviews under the name Stephen Hall accusing Johnstone of being a sex offender, and followed his van as captured in a photo on his phone. Additionally, after eviction by landlord Richard North in May 2024 for leaving the property in disrepair requiring fumigation, Cooper damaged North's vehicle tyres in September 2024, and after bail, punctured tyres of a Mercedes C Class and slashed the roof of a BMW 430d on October 8, 2025, causing £3,400 damage. He also damaged all four tyres of a Ford Transit van belonging to a second ex-landlord over a withheld £750 deposit. The harassment caused significant impact on Johnstone's business, state of mind, and family, leaving him living in fear.