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Man punished for harassing ex-wife with 650 calls in 12 days

A COMPANY director has been jailed for 10 months and suspended for 18 months after he admitted to harassing his ex-wife at the Manchester magistrates court.

Syed Ali, 44, of Rochdale repeatedly telephoned Riffat Riaz, 43, late into the night.


Ali harassed Riaz with 650 calls in 12 days after she put their £300,000 family home up for sale without discussing the matter with him.

During his downpour of calls, the Asian-origin man was reportedly abusive to the businesswoman.

He also accused her of letting two of their three children play truant from school.

After an initial warning, Ali was arrested by the police when he continued to be a nuisance to his ex-wife, who is the managing director of a lifestyle consultancy.

At one point, he called her 513 times in a three-day period alone.

Ali admitted to the harassment before the court.

Under the terms of a restraining order, the court has forbidden the company director from contacting Riaz for 24 months.

It is not known whether the £300,000 property, complete with an ornamental fish pond, is still up for sale as the exact location cannot be made public for legal reasons.

The judge heard that the duo, which ran a number of marketing businesses together, had been married for 16 years but split up in 2018.

Prosecutor Richard Greenhough said: 'She received consistent calls from a 'No Caller ID', which she believed to be her ex-husband.”

The disturbing calls started in February this year after Ali came to know that his ex-wife had put their house up for sale.

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