When people divorce, it can get contentious. In extreme situations, a bitter ex-spouse may turn to harassment. Sometimes that can even lead to criminal charges. That happened for an estranged Colorado couple, and the ex-husband was recently convicted for his actions and is facing substantial prison time.
The man faces up to 18 years in prison after being found guilty by a jury of second-degree burglary and criminal mischief. The couple’s divorce dispute reportedly ended in September 2010 — but only officially.
According to the New York Daily News, the 58-year-old man broke into his ex-wife’s home. He allegedly stuffed raw chicken in her air vents and poured bleach into her grand piano. He didn’t stop there. The man apparently put on mountain boots with cleats and stomped all over her new hardwood floors. He allegedly caused thousands of dollars in damage.
The woman says the harassment started shortly after she filed divorce papers in 2009. The man apparently sent her threatening emails and text messages and told her he would ruin her life and leave her penniless.
The man, a statehouse lobbyist from Denver, apparently peered into her bedroom window and posted a note on her door saying she had died, among other things.
Jurors, who deliberated for several hours after a two-week trial, apparently didn’t buy the defendant’s argument that his wife caused the damage herself in order to blame her ex-husband. He faces up to 18 years in prison.
Source: New York Daily News, “Bitter ex-husband stuffed raw chicken into air vents of ex-wife’s house, ruined hardwood floors,” Larry McShane, Sept. 23, 2011