Nanda Paauw: Logan mum’s terrifying and violent obsession with ex

A disability support worker has been sentenced to prison for stalking her ex, breaking into his southeast Queensland home and threatening him with a weapon.

An unexpected break-up sent a Logan mother down a dark path of violence and obsession, driving her to commit “outrageous” offences, including stalking her ex, breaking into his home, and threatening him with a taser.

Disability support worker Nanda Paige Paauw, 40, appeared at the Beenleigh District Court on Thursday to plead guilty to 18 offences.

The offences included one count of stalking with a weapon in contravention of a domestic violence protection order, two counts of unlawful possession of a category R weapon, two counts of assault, one count of break and enter and a whopping nine counts of breaching a domestic violence protection order.

The court heard Paauw, a mother-of-two, had been with the victim for ten years when the relationship broke down in 2019.

Paauw felt “absolutely abandoned” and lashed out, stalking her ex at his New Beith home for three terrifying months.

Nanda Paauw was sentenced to two years and three months imprisonment for stalking her ex.

According to crown prosecutor Zackery Kaplan, Paauw would call her ex up to 110 times in a single day.

She went to his home on 13 occasions, where she would yell, scream, cry and throw items on the victim’s front porch.

At the height of her offending, between August 22, 2019 and September 24, 2019, Paauw broke into the man’s home with a taser and assaulted him.

“She was not provoked, (the victim) did nothing to warrant it,” Mr Kaplan said.

“He was just trying to live his life after a break up.”

Paauw was finally arrested on September 25, 2019 and spent 87 days, roughly three months, in pre-sentence custody.

Defence counsel Philippa Zande told the court her client suffered from an “appalling childhood” and the traumatic experience of a workplace robbery, which led to the diagnoses of several psychological conditions including borderline personality disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.

Since her release from remand Paauw, who has relocated to Belmont, has undergone significant psychological treatment which has allowed her to acknowledge her previous behaviour as “irrational”.

She has not reoffended since June, 2020.

The judge described Paauw’s behaviour as “outrageous and criminal”, but acknowledged it was in the best interest of both the defendant, complainant and the community that she continue her treatment and rehabilitate outside of custody.

Paauw was sentenced to two years and three months imprisonment, with 87 days served and the remainder to be suspended for an operational period of three years.

She was further sentenced to three years of probation, and the domestic violence protection order preventing her from contacting her ex has been extended to May 2026.