HR boss asks for protection against 'stalker' ex

File picture. Picture: Independent Media

File picture. Picture: Independent Media

Published Feb 22, 2017

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Pretoria – His scorned former lover phoned him up to 30 times a day, stalked him when he had to see clients and badmouthed him.

Stefanus Kleingeld said he simply could no longer handle the stress, so he turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, for protection against his former lover.

The human resources manager at a mine in Carletonville said in court papers that Abigail Gertzen was making his life hell.

To make matters worse, his employer made it clear that if this did not stop he would lose his job.

Judge Billy Mothle on Tuesday interdicted Gertzen from making contact with Kleingeld. She may also not come within 200m of him.

Kleingeld said he could not serve his application on Gertzen, as he had no idea where she lived or worked.

She had told him she worked at the North West University, but no one there knew her, he said.

She lived in the area, but did not want to make her whereabouts known as she wanted to dodge the sheriff, he said.

Kleingeld said he was not proud of his actions, but during 2012 while he was still married, he had an affair with Gertzen.

His wife subsequently divorced him.

His relationship with Gertzen meanwhile ended acrimoniously in 2015, with both of them obtaining protection orders against each other at the local magistrate’s court.

They, however, decided to put things behind them and apologised to each other.

The effect was that they kissed and made up and continued their relationship up to some time last year.

They again broke up and then his problems started, Kleingeld said.

She left messages on his phone and phoned him at work and at home. He handed screenshots to court containing some of the messages, which contain foul language.

In some she called him a “* *** and a bitch” and in others she said she would destroy him.

She also wished him to burn in hell and called him a “f****** sick psycho”.

Kleingeld said he was bombarded with these messages and phone calls for months so that he sometimes switched off his phone.

In December she left about 60 messages on his phone.

It got to the point that he no longer wanted to look at his phone, he said.

She also came to his house and called him names, he said, which was embarrassing in front of the neighbours.

His lawyer eventually sent her a letter of demand via email, to stop harassing him.

This, he said, had no effect and the calls and abuse continued.

Gertzen, meanwhile, also laid charges with police saying Kleingeld harassed her. He labelled the claims nonsense. He said he simply wanted her out of his life.

“She stalks me at any given time I am about to lose my job and I cannot tolerate this any longer.” Kleingeld added that his health was also deteriorating as a result. Gertzen did not oppose the application.

Pretoria News

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