A SURVIVOR of Wee County stalker Darren Harrison has said she can finally move on with her life now that he's behind bars.

Over a period of months last year, Harrison repeatedly contacted her by email and attended at her home address – despite knowing she did not want any contact with him

He also sent her a photo by email which was of a sexual nature and threatened to send the same to her current partner, and contacted one of her friends via Facebook and threatened to send sexual photos to her current partner.

The woman – who we are not identifying – spoke of the horrendous effect Harrison's six-month stalking campaign had on her life.

She told the Advertiser: "I went from a really confident person to somebody that was scared to answer my front door in case it was him.

"You just get scared to unlock your door; every time your email goes you think: 'Is it going to an email from him, full of abuse?'

"You get so paranoid about everything."

Though she welcomed the ultimate outcome, she also claimed the court process had been difficult to endure.

She said: "It's been a terrible process to go through.

"So, I reported this nearly a year ago, and when you first make a report you get assigned different officers that get passed across an awful lot.

"The court case was constantly getting postponed; it's a very lengthy process because it kept getting pushed back four weeks at a time."

During that time, she found it hard to move on with her life because what she went through was "constantly getting brought back up".

However, now that the case is at an end, she has welcomed the outcome.

Harrison was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment, and has been barred from contacting or attempting to contacting the woman for five years.

She said: "It's a relief – to actually get a good result is a surprise, but it's amazing."

The woman also offered advice for anyone who worries they may be in an abusive relationship.

"There's always a way out," she added. "There's always somebody willing to speak; don't cut friends and family off, because at the end of the day, they are the ones who're going to be there for you.

"I'm fine now; the longer you're away from these people, the more strength you get.

"You realise you have nothing to be scared of, they are the ones who need help.

"They just enjoy making you feel small, but they're probably the one who feels like that."