Nursery teacher turned into sinister stalker to get revenge on ex-partner

An Aberdeen nursery teacher who carried out a year-long campaign of stalking against the family of her ex-partner was today branded “evil and warped” by one of her victims.

Emma Johnston, 49, admitted targeting her ex’s mother and sister with dozens of false claims – including messages and letters from funeral and crematorium services and reports to police alleging domestic abuse and benefit fraud.

Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard how one of her victims, a 71-year old leukaemia sufferer, received calls and letters from funeral directors stating she had died.

Parents at Hazlehead Primary, where Johnston works, previously hit out after it emerged the stalker returned to her job as a nursery teacher just hours after pleading guilty to the crimes.

At the time Aberdeen City Council refused to discuss the case – or even to say whether the stalker was still teaching children.

Today a spokeswoman confirmed she WAS still employed by the local authority but would not elaborate any further.

‘A whole different dimension of evil’

Speaking after Johnston, of Waterton Lawn, Stoneywood, was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work, one of her victims – who did not wish to be named – said: “What she did to both of us was particularly nasty in the first instance, but my mother’s illness adds a whole different dimension of evil to the whole situation.

“My mum was targeted more than us. She was getting the police at her door every other day about domestic abuse and other accusations.

“It’s was disgusting to do that to a woman suffering with leukaemia. She was trying to inflict as much pain as possible on my brother without directly involving him.

“She’s an evil and warped woman”.

Appearing in the dock in June Johnston admitted both charges of causing fear or alarm by stalking and was warned against any more contact with the women, or she will face jail.

The offences took place between February 2020 and March 2021.

An email was also sent to one victim’s employer by Johnston claiming the woman had committed a criminal offence. She also sent a letter to Inchgarth Community Centre pretending to be the victim and sharing false information.

However, claims initially made by the Crown Office that Johnston contacted the Dignitas Euthanasia Service pretending to be the 71-year old mother of her ex-partner were removed from the charges.

‘An appalling course of stalking’

Defence agent Iain Hingston described Johnston’s actions as “an unusual situation and something I have not seen before”.

He added: “I think that anyone looking at this will be able to see how extremely ill-advised it was and she recognises just how out of control it became.

“When asked by the police during her interview whether she regretted her actions she said: ‘yes, of course I do’”

Sheriff William Summers told Johnston that her behaviour and the resulting charges “exposed an appalling course of stalking towards the mother and sister of your former partner”.

He added: “This was clearly considered and well planned and involved you making numerous false claims – including that one of the complainers had passed away.

“It was sinister in that you clearly sought to jeopardise the employment of the other complainer by, amongst other things, contacting her employer and that she had made a claim against her work.

“You made numerous false allegations that involved Police Scotland and will inevitably resulted in a waste of police resources.”