Samual Sleep: ‘Rejected stalker’ slams car through ex-girlfriend’s front door

A lovesick Pascoe Vale Lothario went to unusual lengths to try to win back the affection of his former squeeze, but she wasn’t having a bar of it, prompting him to take a terrifying course of action.

Sam Sleep, 35, pleaded guilty to ramming a car through his ex’s front door after she rejected his attempts to rekindle their relationship. Picture: Facebook

A vexed lover who tried — and failed — to win back his ex showered her with gifts before he drove a car through her front door, a court has heard.

Samual Sleep, 35, struggled to cope with the end of his 15-month relationship with his girlfriend after she kicked him out of their Pascoe Vale home in February, the County Court heard this month.

On one occasion he camped outside his victim’s home, which they’d bought together a year before they parted ways, and would often let himself in while she was out, Judge Christopher Ryan told the court.

He also sent her numerous texts, social media messages and emails, as well as flowers to her work.

Sleep also tried to get his victim to click on a link in a text that would have installed a tracking application to her phone.

“On several occasions you entered the property in Pascoe Vale when your victim was not present and left chocolates and love notes in the dwelling,” Judge Ryan told the court.

“You accessed the victim’s old laptop and searched through the computer to find old photographs. You sent photographs of the victim to her ex-boyfriend and her old boss.”

But things boiled over on February 20 when the woman returned home to find Sleep, who had been drinking, there along with a sign made out of 14 A4 sheets of paper and stuck to the loungeroom wall.

The sign declared Sleep’s love for the woman, but his gesture backfired when, furious, she called him a “creep” and a “psycho” and told him to leave.

The spurned Lothario agreed, telling his victim she would “never see me again” — right before he crashed a car through her front door.

“A few seconds later, you drove your Mercedes Veto van into the victim’s car, which was parked outside the unit. As a result of the collision, you pushed your victim’s car into the brick wall of the side of the unit,” Judge Ryan said.

The terrified woman was just 4m from the door at the time of the crash.

Sleep pleaded guilty to stalking, conduct endangering life, damaging property and drink driving.

And forensic psychologist Dr Danny Sullivan told the court Sleep’s behaviour fit the bill for a “rejected stalker”.

“A rejected stalker seeks to reconcile the relationship after its end, and may also desire to exact revenge”, he told the court.

References tendered to the court from family, friends and former colleagues described Sleep as a hardworking business owner whose offending was out of character.

Judge Ryan said he accepted Sleep now accepted his relationship with his ex was well and truly over and had no intention of trying to revive it.

“Your offending is unusual but serious,” Judge Ryan told the court.

“(But) In my opinion your prospects for rehabilitation are good.”

Sleep was sentenced to a three-year community corrections order, fined $1000 and disqualified from driving for 18 months.

He was also ordered to pay $1000 restitution to his victim.

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