Declan Meagher, 24, has been jailed for 18 months after he stalked his ex-girlfriend, bombarded her with 200 calls a day, and cracked an egg over her head in a café in a campaign of harassment. Liverpool Crown Court heard on Tuesday afternoon (October 20) how Meagher had been in a relationship with the woman, who has not been named, for roughly a year between August 2025 and June 2026.
Harassment campaign began after breakup
The relationship broke down after the defendant, of Livingston Drive South in Aigburth, tugged at her underwear while accusing her of being unfaithful during a friend's birthday celebration on June 7 this year. Prosecuting barrister Olivia Randell outlined how the victim ended things with Meagher the very next day, making it clear he was not to contact her again.
She added: "Nevertheless, the defendant proceeded to contact her 200 times a day from an unknown number. When she did answer, she recognised the defendant's voice. He would make comments like 'come here and talk to me, you're dead'." Meagher was also alleged to have contacted his former partner's previous employer, damaged her possessions and "spread malicious rumours", while turning up at her home and various events and activities where she happened to be present.
Egg attack and arrest
During one incident on June 17, he reportedly demanded that she "see him, or he will make things worse for everybody", before bombarding her with 100 phone calls while she was speaking to police officers following a report of his conduct. Then on June 21, while the complainant was visiting a café in Garston, Meagher stormed in, seized her by the arm and hauled her outside, before producing an egg from his pocket, cracking it over her head and spitting at her.
This resulted in his arrest the following day, upon which he was taken into custody at Belle Vale Police Station. However, after being left unattended near a set of shutters, Meagher "saw an opportunity to run", prompting officers to give chase down the street before he was eventually caught on nearby Abbeyvale Drive. He subsequently continued to "tense up and flail around" before being restrained in handcuffs.
Continued stalking despite bail conditions
Meagher was reportedly remanded in custody briefly before his release in August, whereupon he continued stalking his former girlfriend despite bail conditions explicitly forbidding contact. During this period, he threatened to "make a video of her begging for her life", warned he would "chop her mum's legs off" and told her she was "f***ing finished and to ring the plod".
After uploading photographs of his ex-partner to his Facebook story and sending her messages on August 17 demanding she "unblock him, or he'd continue to embarrass her", Meagher was apprehended in his garden at approximately 11.30pm that evening. Officers were forced to use PAVA spray to restrain him.
Victim impact and sentencing
In a statement presented to the court, the victim revealed: "The whole incident has left me feeling anxious about leaving my house in case he's in the area. I'm paranoid to the point I can't sleep. I'm constantly checking out of the front window for any noise, in case it's him. I can't sit in my own back garden, as I'm in fear he may look over the fence. I'm fearful he would kill me."
Meagher's criminal record includes nine convictions spanning 15 offences, amongst them a grievous bodily harm with intent charge from 2016 when he was a youth. He also allegedly attacked family members between 2020 and 2024, and received an 18-month sentence in November 2024 for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and intentional strangulation against a different former partner.
Peter White, representing the defendant, informed the court: "He is genuinely remorseful and disgusted in his own actions. He does note his diagnosis of autism and ADHD, a complete lack of emotional regulation. Unfortunately, at the age of 24, he would not appear to be equipped with the materials needed to enter into adult relationships."
Meagher admitted stalking causing fear of violence, two counts of assault by beating and obstructing a police constable. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a black hoodie, he was jailed for 18 months and handed a 10-year restraining order.
During sentencing, Judge David Swinnerton stated: "You do have a poor record. Your pre-sentence report details 33 domestic violence callouts from partners, your mother and your sisters. The answer for why that happens may lie in what you have said in your letter. You are diagnosed as neurodiverse and find it hard to keep control of your emotions."
The judge further remarked on Meagher's second assault: "It was petty. It was nasty. It was designed to humiliate her. I assume you don't carry an uncooked egg in your pocket routinely, and you took it to do what you did. A pretty nasty way to treat your partner, all borne out of jealousy, your inability to control your emotions, your inability to deal with the ups and downs of an adult relationship."
He added: "I am not going to suspend your sentence. Other things have been tried with you. Every single time, you have gone on to reoffend. All that is going to change you is you being determined, upon your release, not to reoffend again."
