A man who terrorised his neighbours during a prolonged campaign of harassment in East Herts has been sentenced to a total of four and a half years in prison.
Alan Young, aged 57, of no fixed address, pled guilty to harassment, possession of an air rifle and administering a poison or noxious thing with intent.
He appeared at St Albans Crown Court for sentencing on Thursday 20 March where he was told by the presiding judge that due to the seriousness of his actions, he would not be eligible for early release.
The court heard how at the start of 2021, Young began living on a canal boat on the River Stort in Sawbridgeworth, near to Kecksy’s Farm. For reasons unknown, he quickly took a dislike to a couple living nearby and began to intimidate them. He verbally abused them, threatened to kill them and gestured towards them with an axe on one occasion.
The abuse came to a head in early July 2024, when an argument culminated in Young throwing a bucket of human urine and faeces at one of the victims.
On 7 July 2024, Young shot at several police officers with an air rifle just prior to his arrest, but thankfully no police personnel or members of the public were injured. Young was swiftly charged and remanded, before deciding to plead guilty in January this year.
DC Emma Lanaway, from the East Herts Local Crime Unit, said: “The victims in this case were living in constant fear of Young. They were simply trying to live a quiet life but were persistently bullied by the defendant, who made their existence a living nightmare.
“We are pleased to have achieved this sentence for Young, who is now behind bars and unable to target any more innocent people. Everyone has the right to feel safe in their own home so we hope the victims can put this horrendous experience behind them and move forward with their life together.”
Young was also handed a 10-year restraining order which warns him not to contact the victims or face arrest.
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