- Edward Vines, 47, studied at Cambridge University with the BBC’s Emily Maitlis
- He sent her letters while serving a sentence in prison and left her feeling ‘scared’
- But she felt let down by the system and has received an apology from the MoJ
Former Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis has won an ‘unreserved’ apology from the government after a man who stalked her for 25 years was able to contact her from prison.
Edward Vines, 47, studied at Cambridge University with the BBC journalist and wrote to her while he was serving time in HMP Bullingdon.
He was jailed by a judge at Oxford Crown Court on Tuesday for 45 months after admitting two breaches of an indefinite restraining order banning him from contacting her.
She revealed yesterday how her marriage suffered during the stalking campaign and said she felt ‘scared and let down’.
Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis has revealed how being stalked for more than 20 years by Edward Vines (right) affected her marriage with husband Mark Gwynne (left)
The BBC Newsnight presenter said she felt ‘let down’ that Edward Vines could send her letters from prison
But Maitlis has received an apology from the Ministry of Justice for the ‘distress’ it caused her after she was sent the letter.
A court heard Vines briefly became friends with Ms Maitlis while they both studied at Cambridge University in 1989.
He had written letters to her while serving a previous prison sentence for earlier breaches of the restraining order.
Vines had then written again while out on licence and under the supervision of probation services.
Ms Maitlis said: ‘It has affected my relationship with my husband who is frustrated we cannot get to the bottom of the problem even though we have been tackling it through the courts and CPS for over twenty years and it has scared my children who thought the threat had gone way – albeit temporarily while he was behind bars.’
Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis said she had been let down by the criminal justice system
Vines was jailed in 2016 for three years at Oxford Crown Court for breaching an order initially imposed after he was convicted in 2002 (pictured during that year) of harassing Ms Maitlis where he was jailed for four months
Oxford Crown Court heard a letter ended with Vines saying ‘I will not relent until you talk to me.’
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: ‘We apologise unreservedly for this error and for the distress caused to the victim.
‘We have significantly strengthened our monitoring procedures to prevent incidents like this from happening again.
‘We would like to reassure the victim that any future correspondence involving this offender will be carefully checked, with staff reminded of the sensitivities of this particular case.’