Meth addict jailed for stalking ex-wife

A drug-dealing meth addict who stalked his ex-wife has been sentenced to 18 months jail in District Court at Geraldton after pleading guilty to a raft of charges.

Zane Athol John Maylam expressed remorse via his defence counsel during the hearing, and said losing his job and the breakdown of his relationship had caused him to spiral out of control.

The 34-year-old was found in possession of 5.34g of methamphetamine in clipseal bags hidden inside a car in which he was travelling on Brand Highway near Dongara on July 3 last year and was charged with possession of a prohibited drug with intent to sell or supply.

On a separate occasion he was caught driving on the same stretch of road in possession of more than 400g of cannabis and a notebook filled with phone numbers after police had suspected him of driving without a licence.

Aside from the drug charges, Maylam was also guilty of aggravated stalking after he continually tried to contact his then-estranged wife of 16 years after she had left him and taken their four-year-old-son after an incident of domestic violence.

Maylam was arrested on the morning of February 17 when he was found inside his ex-partner’s house at 4am, despite being under a violence restraining order which prohibited him from attempting any form of contact with the victim.

That incident was preceded by a four-day period in which Maylam had made 33 Facebook calls and 44 phone calls to the victim at all hours of the morning, in addition to sending 157 Facebook messages and 20 text messages.

State prosecutor Lyndsay O’Brien acknowledged the calls and messages were not threatening in nature, but said the volume and frequency had left the victim feeling so intimidated she was forced to leave her residence.

In sentencing Maylam, Judge Julie Wager said she was not surprised his meth habit had left him in a terrible state and led to increasingly bad behaviour but she said the seriousness of his offences meant she needed to impose an immediate jail sentence.

Maylam was sentenced to 14 months jail for his charges related to methamphetamine dealing and another four months cumulative for possessing the cannabis with intent to sell and supply.

He also received seven months jail, for various driving offences and unpaid fines, six months jail for aggravated stalking, and four and six-month jail sentences for breaching violence restraining orders.

Those jail terms are to be served concurrently because of the totality of his sentence and have been backdated to May 26.