Narre Warren man stalked Frankston girlfriend, bugged car with GPS device
A Narre Warren stalker who went to extreme lengths to keep tabs on his ex-partner is facing months in jail. But the man’s lawyer said a family tragedy may have triggered the offending.
South East
Don't miss out on the headlines from South East . Followed categories will be added to My News.
An obsessive ex-boyfriend who bugged his former partner’s car with a GPS device as part of his extreme attempts to keep tabs on her was on ice at the time of the crimes, a court has heard.
And Brenton Roissetter is likely to spend another four and a half months behind bars after entering a plea at his sentence indication at Frankston Magistrates Court on Wednesday, as the defence confirmed the couple’s “rollercoaster” relationship was over.
It comes after Roissetter terrorised his ex girlfriend by hacking her EastLink, Telstra and email accounts as well as persistently calling and texting her following their break-up.
The Narre Warren 30-year-old, who was supported by his mother in court, also moved into a Quest apartment just 400m from the woman’s Frankston property before she uncovered the GPS device while at work on June 3.
“(The woman) went to work with concerns about (Roissetter’s) behaviour and saw a black cord under the wheel (of her vehicle),” Frankston Senior Detective Belinda Rampal said on July 2.
“She pulled the cord and a black battery pack with a black GPS device fell out onto the ground.”
The prosecution added the terrified woman was forced to move out of her Frankston home and continues to feel “anxious, violated and fearful of her life”.
But Roissetter’s lawyer said the ex-lovers both used ice and that Roissetter had “faced the music” while in custody since his arrest on June 3.
He said his client, who previously worked as a plumber, had been offered a job opportunity and would move in with his mother when he was released.
“ (Roissetter) acknowledges he was using ice at the time … the woman’s relative died, it was an emotional time,” he said.
“He was distracted by the ending of his relationship and started using.”
But magistrate Duncan Reynolds said there was a “degree of sophistication” in offending relating to the bugged car and tapped records.
“There’s sophistication with the devices used and interfering with the phone,” he said.
“I accept there may be issues with drugs but that doesn’t excuse (the offending).”
Roissetter will assessed for a community corrections order before he is sentenced on July 23.
brittany.goldsmith@news.com.au
MORE NEWS
WOMAN JAILED FOR ANIMAL SHELTER BREAK-IN