Father-of-five swapped his partner’s medication for laxatives in bid to get his revenge because he thought she was cheating

A father switched his medications to laxatives to get revenge on his partner who he thought was cheating on him.

Richard Black, 51, from Dover, admitted administering poison with intent to cause nuisance after he was caught on a CCTV camera sneaking into the couple’s kitchen.

Black was caught on footage from the same camera which led him to believe his partner was being unfaithful, the court heard.

Two days after unknowingly taking the laxatives, he checked the kitchen’s CCTV and saw Black interfering with his medication the night before he fell ill.

He then sent the images to a friend, who passed them on to police.

The same day, she confronted Black and he tried to blame her illness on poorly prepared shrimp.

His defense lawyer, Nadia Semlali, said: “He saw something on the CCTV that triggered something in his mind, but it is an action he has no intention of repeating.”

To get revenge on his then partner, he added laxatives to her medication without her knowing.

It was not clear in court whether he was actually having an affair.

The court heard how Black’s partner had started to feel unwell in June last year.

In a statement read to the court, the woman described initially feeling dizzy and then fainting before her symptoms progressively worsened and she began to suffer from nausea and diarrhea.

The father-of-five was given a five-year restraining order and 180 hours of unpaid community work for his crime.

Despite his excuses, the self-employed jet washer was arrested and released on bail until his appearance at Canterbury Crown Court, when he admitted the offence.

Judge Simon Taylor KC addressed the defendant and told him this was a “relatively unusual offence” not often seen in the Crown Court.

He added that although Black’s offending was at the lower end of the scale for this charge, his actions had a “significant psychological impact” on his victim.

In his sentencing comments, the judge addressed Black directly: ‘After the turmoil in the relationship, you took a totally inappropriate path.

“I have accepted that you did not intend to cause any real physical harm, but this was a calculated attack with a significant psychological impact.”

Black was spared jail, with the judge accepting that he had not intended to cause actual bodily harm with the “calculated attack”.

Semlali added: “He is very sorry for his actions.” It was very out of character for him.

Black was given a five-year restraining order prohibiting contact with his ex-partner.

He must also carry out 180 hours of unpaid community work over 18 months and pay costs of £535, plus a statutory surcharge.

Canterbury Crown Court, Kent, where the court heard Black admit to administering poison to his ex.