Derry man jailed for breaching restraining order and stalking former partner

A man has been jailed at Derry Magistrates Court charged with breaching a restraining order and stalking his former partner.

Holger Berthold (49) of Abercorn Road in Derry admitted breaching a restraining order after his former partner reported, on September 23 last year, that she had received word from a friend that Berthold had been posting about her on Facebook, calling her a 'narcissistic bitch'.

The post was in German and had to be translated. 

The woman reported that she had been granted a Restraining Order earlier in September. 

She again reported on October 7 that Berthold had continued to post about her, including sharing photos from a private photo shoot years before.

Overall, his former partner provided police with 170 pages of Facebook posts he had made about her.

Defence Barrister Sinead Rogan said that Berthold had made full admissions and pleaded guilty to the charges, adding that he had been in custody since December.

District Judge Barney McElhom called the breach of the restraining order 'particularly egregious' since it occurred two weeks after it was put into place. 

He sentenced Berthold to nine months in prison and extended the restraining order to 2027.