A JEALOUS woman stalked her police officer ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend, waging a “surveillance operation” and causing them “considerable changes” to their lives, a court has heard.

Rachel Barnes, a former researcher on hit Channel 4 show Gogglebox, set up fake social media profiles to befriend the officer’s new girlfriend and then visited her home in Faringdon, posing as a delivery driver.

She falsely reported her for Covid-19 rule breaches during the third lockdown last January and caused the woman, a local crime investigator, to fear that her own employer would be putting her under the microscope.

As well as harassing her ex-boyfriend, an officer of unknown rank, Barnes also harassed his new girlfriend’s housemate, who she went to university with.

The 27-year-old appeared before Swindon Crown Court on Friday afternoon where she was due to be sentenced, having previously admitted two counts of stalking and one count of stalking causing serious alarm or distress.

But Judge Peter Crabtree  decided not to pass sentence as it had already reached 4.15pm – 15 minutes past the court’s usual sitting time – and it was a case that required “considerable thought”.

Instead, Barnes will appear again on Monday morning at 10am.

The court previously heard the officer met Barnes, of Gas Lane in Cricklade, on Hinge – described as “the dating app designed to be deleted”.

But after the relationship broke down in December, Barnes discovered her former partner was in a new relationship the following month. She contacted the officer, saying she had seen him having fun with somebody else.

On two occasions she visited his new girlfriend’s house, and the police staff member told the court on Friday that she felt nervous taking her daughter to the park.

She described Barnes’s actions as calculated and said she was left stuttering when police officers challenged her over the false allegations of a Covid breach.

“She must have followed me at some point to find out where I live,” she told the court, adding that she had bought a Ring doorbell camera, had felt paranoid and that her boyfriend felt guilty for bringing Barnes into her life.

“I felt so trapped,” she said. “Rachel has found my social media, my workplace and now my house.”

The court heard that on one occasion, the former marketing campaigns assistant had been sighted outside Gablecross police station just hours after the victim had asked security to be aware that she might be there.

Describing how she was left in tears in front of her sergeant, she added: “It makes me feel weak and vulnerable, like she has won. I just want to be left alone.

“Even after sentencing, I will remain paranoid.”

In all, Barnes was located in the Faringdon area via mobile phone analysis on 400 occasions, although defence barrister Gareth James urged the judge to be cautious when drawing conclusions on this as she could have been passing through the area.

Prosecutor Christopher Wing said the stalking had been persistent and over a prolonged period, with substantial planning and caused a considerable change to the lifestyles of the three victims.

But Mr James disputed this.

“The situation is that it is quite clear that Ms Barnes is a young lady that has a number of difficulties herself,” he told the court, adding that probation found her to be of a low risk of reoffending.

He urged any custody sentence to be suspended if possible.

Judge Crabtree will come to a decision when the case resumes on Monday.