BBC tennis pundit was stalked by obsessed man who had previously targeted her sister
The former British tennis pro, Naomi Broady, whose brother is tennis star Liam Broady, was subjected to a relentless barrage of Facebook messages between January and December 2023, in what prosecutors described as a deeply disturbing harassment campaign.
David Richardson, 39, from Stockport, appeared before Manchester magistrates' court last month where he admitted stalking Naomi's sister, Emma, 37, for three years and harassing Naomi over a 12-month period.
Court documents reveal how Richardson sent 'multiple unwanted images and messages' via Facebook, as well as gifts, cards, and paintings.
The campaign, it said, caused Naomi 'serious harm and distress'.
Naomi, 35, who was part of the BBC's Wimbledon coverage last month and works as a commentator for BBC Radio 5 Live, is the latest in a growing list of female sports stars targeted by obsessive fans.
When confronted at his home by The Mirror, Richardson admitted the offences.
He claimed he had first tried to strike up a relationship with Naomi's sister Emma before asking her out.
Naomi, 35, who was part of the BBC's Wimbledon coverage last month and works as a commentator for BBC Radio 5 Live
Richardson had gone to school with Emma, but after she rebuffed him, he began targeting Naomi.
He told reporters: 'I wanted to try to win her over. I wanted to ask her out... I was a bit out of practice with the girls... I've not been in a relationship'.
The stalker confessed he had bought her a Selfridges voucher and some flowers for her birthday, but didn't ask her out.
Then when Valentines Day and Christmas Day came around he sent her the same gifts. He claimed she thanked him and said it 'really cheered her up'.
Richardson has now been banned from contacting either woman or approaching their homes ahead of sentencing at Manchester Crown Court on August 18.
A source close to the sisters said: 'It was terrifying. They were pleased the police took it seriously. Action has now been taken'.
Court documents on Richardson state he: 'Between 13/9/2020 and 4/12/2023 at Stockport pursued a course of conduct, by sending multiple unwanted images and messages via Facebook and sending unwanted gifts, cards and paintings, which amounted to stalking causing Emma Broady serious alarm or distress, which had a substantial adverse effect on her usual day-to-day activities when you knew or ought to have known that your course of conduct would cause alarm or distress.'
They add: 'Between 18/1/2023 and 4/12/2023 at Stockport, pursued a course of conduct which amounted to the harassment of Naomi Broady, and which you knew or ought to have known amounted to the harassment of her in that you sent various unwanted messages on Facebook.'
The ordeal mirrors the experiences of other high-profile tennis stars, including British Katie Boulter and US Open champion Emma Raducanu, who have both spoken of being stalked and threatened in recent years.
Boulter revealed she had been followed in a car and sent menacing social media messages, while Raducanu was left in tears after a man trailed her to four tournaments, prompting a restraining order.
Naomi, a former Wimbledon quarter-finalist in mixed doubles and a mother to twin boys born last December, began working as a BBC commentator in 2021.
She had a celebrated career on court, reaching the second round at both Wimbledon and the US Open, and winning her first senior title in France in 2009.
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Daily Mail
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Truth about JD Vance's new BFF Thomas Skinner's 'modern-day Del Boy' roots: Apprentice and Strictly star's childhood in £2.5m home and £29k-a-year school
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The post said: 'This guy went to a school that costs £23,000 a year to attend as a day student and £46,000 a year to attend as a boarder. Yet, he's got every Deano in the land eating out of his hand as some fake working-class hero. Embarrassing.' Skinner who has admitted being dyslexic replied in a lengthy post which did not name Brentwood School, but stated: 'I got a sports scholarship to a fantastic sports academy school, that I later got expelled (for selling porno DVDs my dad got from me off his mate in the pub so I could have a few more quid in my pocket) and I was an idiot when I was younger.' He added: 'I'm dyslexic and struggled with school, I was an extremely lucky child who got given the opportunity to go there, what's wrong with that? But I worked extremely hard to get myself there and I proud of that. 'I've been working on markets since the age of 12. I work every day and Employ 18 people. 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