A middle-aged driving instructor obsessed with his teenage student created a TikTok account dedicated to her and tried to pay dark web hackers to access her social media accounts.
Graham Mansie, 52, “became besotted” with the 17-year-old between July and October 2021 while teaching her how to drive in Bromley, southeast London.
He asked her out for drinks, told her she was his “favourite” and created a TikTok account dedicated to her.
The driving instructor also gave another student a gift bag to pass on to her which contained £65 in restaurant vouchers, a keyring with eight personalised charms and a card in which he described the victim as “kind” and “amazing”.
The victim became concerned about Mansie and told her mother.
But when the parent confronted him about his inappropriate behaviour and told him he could no longer teach her daughter, he asked: “Is it because I love her?”
After the teen blocked Mansie on all social media and stopped learning how to drive with him, he was spotted on her road before quickly making off.
In September 2021 the victim moved out of London to York to attend university.
Mansie created a fake Instagram account as a student and befriended her and her flatmates.
He also managed to get on to a WhatsApp group for her halls of residence which could be accessed through a university Facebook page.
He was reported to police in October and arrested in November 2021.
Mansie was convicted of one count of stalking at Bexley Magistrates’ Court on Thursday after changing his plea to guilty on the first day of his trial.
He will be sentenced at Bromley Magistrates’ Court on 18 May.
Speaking after the conviction, Tracy Mesmain, a district crown prosecutor within the magistrates unit in CPS London South, said: “Stalking can be deeply distressing and can have a long-term impact upon victims.
“Graham Mansie became besotted with his student. As a trusted driving instructor, he was simply tasked with helping a teenager pass her test, but his conduct became inappropriate and worrying.
“The victim also described his actions as making her feel vulnerable.
“The prosecution case included phone evidence which showed Mansie had accessed the victim’s social media pages numerous times.
“When arrested and interviewed, he also confessed to police that he had used the dark web to try to contact people to hack into the victim’s social media accounts, in order to see what she was up to after getting blocked.
“He told police officers that he had lost hundreds of pounds being scammed trying to do this and was in love with the victim.
“I would like to highlight the bravery of the victim in this case, who came to court to give evidence against her stalker, before he changed his plea on the day of the trial.
“The CPS is absolutely committed to working with the police to bring stalkers before courts to face justice.
“I hope the successful prosecution of this case gives other victims the confidence to come forward and report their stalkers to the police.”
