Actress Eubha Akilade, known for her role as PC Lorna Burns in the BBC drama Shetland, and her sister Eilidh Akilade were targeted by 57-year-old Gary Summers, Ipswich Crown Court heard. Summers bombarded both women with hundreds of emails between January 2024 and October 2025, described by Recorder Jeremy Benson as "thoroughly disgusting, revolting".
Racist and sexual messages
Summers told Eubha Akilade "as a mixed race woman, you will have less virtue than say a typical white woman", a comment she described as "bizarre and upsetting". He also told her she would be treated as a "second class citizen" because of her race and suggested their mother should regret bringing mixed race children into the world.
To Eilidh Akilade, Summers said he had watched an interview with her on YouTube and found it "one of the most arousing and blissful experiences of my life". He made numerous other highly sexualised comments to both women.
In-person stalking and arrest
Summers even travelled to London to spy on one victim and left her terrified when he posted her a parcel and a handwritten note. Things came to a head when he worked out where Eubha Akilade lived, culminating in the parcel being sent to her address. The parcel contained a T-shirt bearing the slogan 'We stand with Israel' and a handwritten note signed 'Kind regards'.
Summers, of Bungay in Suffolk, was arrested last October and admitted two counts of racially aggravated stalking that caused serious alarm or distress. He was finally identified using CCTV and DNA linking him to the parcel.
Sentencing and impact
In a victim impact statement, Eilidh Akilade said she began subconsciously predicting Summers's comments about her. She wrote: "His voice became part of my internal monologue, which really impacted my self-esteem. My world became increasingly small."
Addressing him before Ipswich Crown Court on Friday, Recorder Benson said: "You should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself." At this, Summers hung his head and nodded. Recorder Benson handed Summers a prison sentence of 30 months which he suspended for two years.
Summers was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay £1,000 in court costs and a statutory charge, totalling £3,687. He was banned from contacting either victim until otherwise directed by the court.
