A stalker who followed his victim hundreds of miles while subjecting her to “mental torture” has been jailed.

Thomas Whitley also phoned her hundreds of times with threats to kill himself over a seven-week period.

His victim saw the 29-year-old jailed for two years and three months at Canterbury Crown Court after placing her in fear of her safety between January and February.

Courier Whitley, who is from Wigan, rang, texted and turned up at ex-partner Kelly Sutch’s Greater Manchester home so frequently she fled 250 miles to Kent.

Following his arrest in February, Whitley ran roughshod over bail conditions by tracking Miss Sutch to an address near Canterbury, under the guise he was on holiday.

He phoned her about 500 times over a number of days and, within 24 hours, bombard her with 106 missed calls.

Prosecutors described Miss Sutch as suffering “mental torture” at Whitley’s hands who executed a “high degree of planning”.

“She didn’t feel safe in her home and was struggling to keep the defendant out of her life. She was scared he would do her serious harm,” prosecutor Richard Hutchins said.

“She describes mental torture, she describes constantly looking out of the window.

“There must have been a high degree of planning. He drove from one side of the country to the other.”

Whitley’s victim, who appeared via videolink, could be seen visibly distressed as Mr Hutchins described his numerous unfounded accusations of drug taking and infidelity.

Mitigating, Edmund Fowler argued Whitley pleaded guilty at an early opportunity and was remanded in tough conditions, due to Covid restrictions.

“He has spent 10 months in prison at the worst time, possibly, dating back to Victorian times,” Mr Fowler said.

Judge Mark Weekes told Whitley his “course of conduct” caused his victim “very considerable concern”.

Whitley, of Almond Green Avenue in Wigan, pleaded guilty earlier this year to stalking involving serious alarm or distress and driving without insurance.

He will be subject to a restraining order until further notice while his driving licence will be endorsed with six penalty points.

Time already spent on remand will be deducted off his overall sentence.