Chelmsford: Committed stalker jailed after harassing stranger

A stalker who terrified his victim by frequently following her home and making unwanted sexual advances towards her was jailed thanks to a lengthy investigation.

Adama Suktuna-Waggeh, 28, carried out a campaign of stalking and harassment against a woman in the Chelmsford area.

The victim was forced to change her behaviour and take steps to protect herself after he continued to follow and approach her, despite her repeatedly making clear she had no desire to speak to him.

This persistent stalking took place on occasions between November 2022 and September 2023, when the victim reached a point of reporting the behaviour to us.

She told us she would see Suktuna-Waggeh, a complete stranger to her, regularly.

She said on occasion he would follow her three to four times in a single week.

Suktuna-Waggeh would frequently wait for her on her train to work, either sitting near her or otherwise ensuring she could see him, on the first occasion making sexually suggestive gestures towards her.

He would also follow her home from the station as she returned from working night shifts.

On one occasion, when she stopped to challenge him, he told her he had been “watching and noticing her”, before directing sexualised comments towards her.

He frequently asked her for sex or for her phone number, telling her he wanted to spoil her and be her friend, despite her persistence in asking him to stop this behaviour.

She decided to make a report to us after the behaviour escalated further in September 2023.

The victim was on her way home from work and was again greeted by the defendant waiting for her on the train.

He again disembarked the train at her station and followed her home to the building where she lives.

She called out to a security guard working at the building, who told Suktuna-Waggeh to stop bothering the victim.

While this interaction took place, the victim tried to take a picture of Suktuna-Waggeh on her phone.

He responded by slapping her hand and taking the phone from her.

After he eventually left, the victim told the security guard she was going to report the matter to the police as she no longer felt safe.

A team from our Crime and Public Protection Investigations Hub took up the investigation and ensured support was in place for the victim.

They worked quickly to gather evidence and secure charges against Suktuna-Waggeh, of Georges Road, London.

He was charged with stalking involving serious alarm and distress and assault by beating.

He denied both charges until the first day of his scheduled trial at Chelmsford Crown Court on Monday 16 September, when he changed his pleas to guilty.

At the same court on Monday 7 October, he was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment.

A five year restraining order was imposed, with strict conditions attached prohibiting contact of any kind with the victim.

'Constantly looking over my shoulder'

In an impact statement, the victim said:

“I really enjoy my job and love what I do, and I just want to go to work, have fun with the people I work with and then come home and get some rest between shifts.
“I work a stressful job with vulnerable people and work six or seven days a week, and can work up to 17 hours a day.
“So it is important, when I am at home, I can get some rest.
“The stalking has caused me to be worried all the time as I must always be on high alert. I had to be constantly checking that this man is not following me and stalking me.
“I was constantly having to check over my shoulder and make sure that he wasn’t following me to my workplace.
“Every time I got on the train, I would be anxious and worried he would be there waiting for me.
“It got to the point that before he was arrested, I was staying late at work or going late into work just to avoid him on the train.”

'We knew we had to protect her'

Temporary Detective Inspector Victoria March said: 

“Suktuna-Waggeh is a committed offender who dedicated himself to following and approaching this victim over a sustained period of time, ignoring her objections at every turn.
“The victim had to change her work schedules and the times she used public transport to avoid him, but he continued to find and follow her whenever he could.
“On one occasion he followed her into a dark underground car park, only leaving when she pointed out there was a CCTV camera nearby.
“Stalking is a frightening offence and it can happen to anyone.
“But to see this type of long-term, fixated attention directed towards a stranger is rare and was a particularly worrying element of this case.
“Right from the early stages of this investigation, we knew we had to protect the victim and ensure Suktuna-Waggeh was arrested, charged and convicted for this behaviour.”

Work to tackle stalking

There are a number of steps we can take to protect the victims of stalking.

For example, Stalking Protection Orders are civil orders we can apply for to help with early intervention.

They address stalking behaviours before they escalate, helping to protect victims from more serious harm and hopefully change the behaviour of the suspect.

SPO's can be used to monitor the actions of the person who is believed to be carrying out acts of stalking. In either a domestic abuse or non-domestic abuse setting.

They impose restrictions or requirements on those who we suspect are causing harm.

For example, we can use them to ensure someone stays away from a certain location helping a victim feel safer in their home or workplace.

If a breach occurs, we have the power to arrest the suspect.

Read more about the support we can offer to victims of stalking through our dedicated page.

At Essex Police we put victims at the heart of everything we do. The Victims’ Code explains the rights that everyone can expect to receive as a victim of crime, and helps us define what we must do for all victims from their initial contact with our force until the conclusion of their case.

Find out more about the code and to understand the rights of a victim of crime, on our support for victims and witnesses of crime page.

To report a crime, please use our digital 101 service. In an emergency call 999.