- Read the interview in which Anthony Stokes tells Mail+ his story here
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Former Arsenal and Celtic striker Anthony Stokes has been jailed for five months for contacting his ex-girlfriend against court orders, despite his lawyer claiming a month behind bars awaiting sentence had been ‘unpleasant’ and chastening for him.
Stokes, 35, left his jail cell in central Scotland on Friday to appear at Hamilton Sheriff Court in handcuffs.
After serving 28 days at HMP Addiewell, it had been thought he should not be sent back behind bars for what police described as the harassment of ex-girlfriend Eilidh Scott and her parents and the subsequent breach of a restraining order to contact her.
But Sheriff Colin Dunipace ordered Stokes, of Dublin, to be locked up after criticizing him for his behavior towards his former partner.
He was also banned from contacting Mrs Scott for five years and her parents for one year.
Former Arsenal and Celtic striker Anthony Stokes has been jailed for five months for contacting his ex-girlfriend against court orders
Stokes pictured with ex-girlfriend Eilidh Scott as a court heard he harassed her and her parents
Stokes was banned from contacting Mrs Scott for five years and her parents for one year
Sheriff Dunipace said: ‘It is extremely disappointing for this court to see someone like you, who is clearly a man of some talent and ability, who has so much to give and who has no doubt brought joy to many, now to find yourself in this situation and I find it extremely tragic.
‘It is clear that your ex-partner fears for her safety and the statements that she has made to this court are little less than frightening.
“You should be under no illusion that the duty of this court is to protect women from this kind of conduct.
‘You were told when you were handed a community payback order that it was a direct alternative to custody and yet you have failed to comply with it. I cannot trust that you would comply with the terms of a further community order.’
With the sentence backdated to February 16, when he was first sent behind bars, Stokes could be released from prison within a month.
In an interview with Mailsport before taking a ferry from Dublin to Scotland, where he had jumped bail, and handed himself in to police, Stokes said he wanted to draw a line under a controversial past.’
All this – the police charges, to avoid them, have been exhausted. But I will move on from that, give myself and draw a line,” he said.
Jim O’Dowd, defending Stokes, told the court: ‘Since he has been in custody there has been a big change in his attitude towards the offences. He now clearly realizes the hardship and regret his behavior has caused his victims.
Anthony Stokes, pictured playing for Celtic in 2011, was described as ‘a man of some talent and ability’
‘He’s been in Addiewell since last month and it’s been a particularly unpleasant experience for him because people know who he is and he’s had a pretty hard time.
‘He was kept behind his door for 23 hours a day and this has led to him now understanding how serious these cases are. He advises me that he would comply with any community order, but he knows that custody will be uppermost in the court’s mind.’
In 2019, Stokes admitted that he had bombarded Scott with a series of abusive messages on WhatsApp and email after their relationship ended while he was seeing out his playing career in Iran.
He also turned up at her home in Shotts, Lanarkshire, late at night demanding to know where she was.