The harassment was described by a judge as the worst such case he had seen. About the time of lockdown, the victim told the court, the malicious messages reached a crescendo and she deleted all social media accounts. Regardless, Judge Phillips was staggered by the vindictiveness of the repeated attacks. Judge Phillips called it "an absolute nonsense" but he was faced with a quandary over how to deal with the cyberstalker. Judge Phillips declined an application by the Otago Daily Times to photograph Cochrane.

Source: New Zealand Herald March 11, 2021 17:25 UTC