Whiteley man convicted of stalking after following woman home in his car

Hamed Kardani, aged 29, of Coleridge Drive in Whiteley, was found guilty by Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, April 4. The court heard that on June 4 2022, Kardani had been driving his Mini Cooper and began following a woman as she was driving in the Swanwick area. The woman, aged in her 30s, noticed the car following her until she arrived at the Hedge End Marks & Spencer store.

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Kardani, who was not known to the woman, parked directly in front of her vehicle in the car park and made her feel uneasy by making eye contact. He stayed in his car while the woman shopped then followed her again when she left. As a result, the woman took a longer route to leave the car park and was able to initially lose him at a roundabout. The ‘distressing’ encounter culminated in Kardani following the woman to her home which lead her to make a police report.

Kardani was subsequently charged with stalking after his behaviour was captured on CCTV. He denied the stalking charge before his conviction this week. Kardani was bailed by Southampton Magistrates’ Court where he will return for sentencing on May 23.

PC Matt Jones, who led Fareham Neighbourhoods Policing Team’s investigation of the incident, said: ‘Kardani demonstrated a pattern of concerning behaviours in which he continually followed this woman in her car. He pulled up next to her in a car park and waited for her for 20 minutes whilst she shopped.

‘The woman in this case quickly picked up on his strange actions and became distressed when Kardani continued to follow her, including turning up outside her home address. The fact that the victim in this case had to change her routine and take evasive action to try and get away from Kardani demonstrates just how unacceptable his behaviour was.

'Kardani tried to pass of his encounters with the victim as a coincidence, something which the courts sternly told him was ‘nonsense’ in light of the evidence against him. No one should be made to feel the way that the victim was made to feel in this case, and I want our communities to know that we will take robust action against anyone who targets people in this manner.

‘We want people to have confidence to report this type of concerning behaviour to us, so if you have been affected please contact police.’

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said in a statement: ‘Officers are being specifically trained to spot concerning behaviours and will actively be challenging these. Where criminal offences are identified, these will be prosecuted.

This training will also ensure officers who are patrolling the night time economy are more effective at identifying people who may be vulnerable on a night out, and to offer safeguarding advice.

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Not everyone who has been affected by stalking or abuse has the confidence to report to police. There are support services out there that can offer help to you, completely independent of the police, should you need support.

The force also encouraged people to use the Home Office StreetSafe tool to report unsafe areas. For further support, visit the Hampshire police website.