A “SERIAL harasser” telephoned a man living in England and threatened to kill him the next time he came to Wales.

Scott Preece, 40, from Pontypool, warned Darren Harvey he would end up being dumped in Wentwood Forest.

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Cardiff Crown Court heard the woodland bordering Newport and Monmouthshire was “notorious for the dead bodies supposedly disposed there”.

Steven Donoghue, prosecuting, said Preece was in a relationship with an ex-partner of Mr Harvey’s and called him at just after 10.25pm on Saturday, April 25.

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He told the court: “The victim (who lives in Essex) said the man who telephoned him was aggressive and intoxicated and had a Welsh accent.

“The man told him, ‘I’m going to kill you’, before he put the phone down.

“About a minute later, another phone call was received but there was just silence for about 20 seconds.

“A third phone call was made and Mr Harvey said, ‘If you’ve got something to say, say it’.

“The man said to him, ‘The next time you come to Wales, I’m going to kill you, you b**. You are going to end up in Wentwood Forest.’

“That’s a place known to Mr Harvey as being notorious for where dead bodies were disposed of.”

Mr Donoghue added that Preece told the victim he knew his car and his registration number and vowed to follow him.

The court heard although Mr Harvey had never met the defendant it became clear to him he was being threatened by his ex-girlfriend’s new partner.

Preece made two further calls at 12.30am and 12.35am but the complainant did not answer his phone.

Mr Donoghue said: “Mr Harvey was worried about what might happen. He couldn’t sleep and reported the matter to the police.

“When the defendant was arrested, he told officers he was drunk. He regretted doing it but insisted it was Mr Harvey who was in the wrong because he had been harassing his ex-partner.”

Preece, of Oxford Street, Griffithstown, pleaded guilty to making threats to kill.

The court was told how the defendant had a previous conviction for the same offence in 2005 for which he received a suspended prison sentence.

Also on his record are five previous convictions for harassment and one for battery.

Mr Donoghue said: “The defendant is a serial harasser and serial breacher of restraining orders.”

Peter Donnison, representing Preece, said: “There is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation in this case despite his relevant previous convictions.”

The judge, Recorder Paul Lewis QC, told the defendant: “You said to Mr Harvey you would kill him the next time he came to Wales and he would end up in Wentwood Forest, a place notorious for the dead bodies that are supposedly disposed of there.

“You caused distress to your victim and your antecedents are an aggravating factor.”

He jailed Preece for 10 months and made him the subject of a five-year restraining order not to contact Mr Harvey.