Father who left notes on grave of son found guilty of stalking ex-wife and daughters

A father has been found guilty of stalking his estranged wife and daughters after leaving notes on his late son’s grave.

David Foster also sent letters to the women and made malicious reports of lockdown rule-breaking to police, resulting in officers attending at his estranged wife’s home.

Heather Foster previously told the court that the incident brought back painful memories of the night police turned up at her door to tell her that their son Samuel had been killed in a car crash on A82.

Foster, 58, had denied a single charge that he engaged in a course of conduct that caused fear or alarm, which related to incidents between January and June of 2020.

On the second day of the trial, which had been adjourned from last month, Foster’s daughter Kirsty told how she had suffered “intimidation” when her father sent letters to her home and left notes at her brother’s grave.

In evidence led by fiscal depute Emily Hood, Miss Foster said: “He just continued to put notes to the grave.”

Miss Foster said she believed the notes left at Kilvean Cemetery were intended for her and her mother because they were not enclosed in an envelope and instead had been wrapped in cellophane that ensured they remained legible.

She said she thought they were intended to cause “distress” and said: “He had been told not to contact us – he just found another way to do it.”

Under cross-examination from defence solicitor Kevin Hughes, Miss Foster admitted she had previously removed items left at the graveside by her father and his family but said this had been a “one-off moment of madness.”

At an earlier hearing, the court had heard from Heather Foster, who told how one of the letters from the accused had seemed to warn that he was using cameras to watch them at the graveside.

Mrs Foster also spoke about the moment police had turned up at her house during the Covid-19 restrictions acting on a tip-off about an alleged “illegal gathering”.

She said: “My youngest son was killed in a car accident and the police came to my door to tell me he had died. So for the police to turn up at my door like that I thought something had happened to my other son or my daughters.

“The last time the police came to my house at that hour was to tell me Samuel was dead.”

The former Millburn Academy pupil died in the two-car crash on the A82 near Dochgarroch in February 2019.

A police witness later confirmed to the court that the tip-off call had come from Foster’s number.

Mrs Foster told the court her estranged husband had also been sending letters to her and her grown-up children, including some telling them to “believe in karma”.

She said she found the letters to be “intimidating” and so reported him to the police.

Police advised Foster not to contact her directly – at which point, she said, he began leaving letters at Inverness’ Kilvean Cemetery.

At the earlier hearing Fosters’ other daughter, Samatha Wilson told of her own distress at receiving a hand-delivered letter from her father on the day she returned home from hospital with her newborn son.

She said she believed her actions up until that point had made it clear she did not want any contact with her father.

Sheriff’s verdict

The defence led no evidence and Sheriff Eilidh MacDonald rejected a submission from Mr Hughes that there was no case to answer.

Finding Foster guilty of the single charge, Sheriff MacDonald said: “I believe the Crown witnesses. I accept it when they say it caused upset, fear and alarm.”

The sheriff deferred sentencing to next month to allow for the preparation of reports and told Foster: “I’m going to explore various sentencing options. It doesn’t necessarily mean that the most extreme sentencing options are going to be considered.”

She also continued consideration of the imposition of a non-harassment order until the next hearing, allowing Foster to remain on bail in the meantime.