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Home Office minister Jess Phillips told the parents of Alice Ruggles that failings before she was murdered by her ex-boyfriend has inspired changes to stalking laws
Jess Phillips chats to the family of murdered Alice Ruggles
The heartbroken parents of a stalking victim who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend have been told her case was a “real inspiration” behind tough new laws.
Sue Hills and Clive Ruggles spoke movingly about daughter Alice, who was just 24 when she was killed by Lance Corporal Trimaan Dhillon after multiple failings by police. They discussed the tragedy with Home Office minister Jess Phillips, as the Government announces tough new measures to tackle stalking.
Mr Ruggles described the treatment his daughter endured as “horrendous”. Alice died after a vicious attack in her flat in Gateshead in October 2016, despite reporting Dhillon to police.
Her dad said: “She met this guy online, and then she discovered that he’d been two-timing her, she stopped the relationship. He stalked her horrendously, her phone was always pinging.
“He leaves her this message on his phone, and it’s horrendous. It’s all about ‘I’m not the sort of guy who would kill you. ‘I was never thinking about killing you.'”
Ms Hills said Dhillon was issued with a police information notice (PIN) warning him about his behaviour, but it made no difference. Describing a conversation Alice had with police she said: “The call handler told her that she had several options, one of which was that they could issue a PIN.
“He actually told her that if the guy broke the PIN he’d be arrested. And there’s no such thing as breaking a PIN. And she went for this option. And then, of course, he continued to contact her.”
Despite being given a police warning and being spoken to by his Army superiors, Dhillon sent her a package, which she reported to police. On October 12, 2016, he broke into Alice’s home and stabbed her to death.
Ms Phillips told the bereaved parents: “We’re looking at the standards of Stalking Protection Orders and the improvements of the police response. And Alice’s case is a real inspiration to the work that we are trying to do.”
It comes as the Government unveils new laws to strengthen police responses to stalking. Under new measures introduced in the Crime and Policing Bill, put in front of MPs today, Stalking Protection Orders will be expanded.
These orders, which were not available when Alice was killed, force perpetrators to attend a programme to address the root causes of their behaviour.
At the moment they can only be issued by courts if police apply for them – but the Bill will mean they can be imposed directly on conviction, and even on acquittal if there is evidence a person is a threat to their victim.