A JILTED man was so upset at being dumped he bombarded his ex with abusive phone calls and covered her car in paint ­- twice in the same night.

Northwich Magistrates Court heard Alfred McCluskey, 49, pestered his neighbour Jacqueline Bayliss, 39, with constant phone calls, even after being warned off by the police.

McCluskey, unemployed, of Victoria Road, Northwich, appeared before the court in custody on Wednesday. He pleaded guilty to two charges of harassment by persistent use of a telephone, and also admitted criminal damage.

Peter Hussey, prosecuting, said the defendant started harassing Miss Bayliss after she ended their relationship on September 5. In a statement police, she said she finished the relationship because she thought the defendant was 'taking too much control' of her life.

The phone calls started on Tuesday, September 11, when McCluskey contacted her several times and then turned up at her house at midnight. She declined to let him in but then received a spate of further calls into the early hours of the morning. When they started to become 'more abusive and insulting' she contacted the police.

Mr Hussey said: 'When the police arrived she discovered paint had been poured over her Renault Megane car. The police assisted in removing the paint before any real damage was caused but after they had gone she had yet another call which was abusive in nature.'

Mr Hussey said the police warned McCluskey about his behaviour, but he still continued to bombard Ms Bayliss with phone calls. She looked out of her window in the morning and was horrified to discover her car was splattered in paint yet again.

Said Mr Hussey: 'There was an empty pot of paint left beside the car. The police came round once again and cautioned the defendant on suspicion of harassment. They also searched his house and found a paint tin lid without the pot. The colour matched the empty tin.'

McCluskey was arrested and released on police bail, but over the next few days continued to harass Ms Bayliss.

Fiona Morrison, defending, said McCluskey was registered disabled as a result of falling while working in South Africa.

She said: 'This is a case where somebody has taken the ending of a relationship very much to heart and is hurting because of it. To say he has fallen quite heavily for this woman in an understatement.'

Magistrates gave McCluskey a year's conditional discharge but warned him further harassment would result in a tougher sentence. He was also ordered to pay £100 in compensation to Ms Bayliss and £40 in court costs.