Glasgow man pleads guilty to stalking women through Gumtree
Michael Curling also sent women threatening and abusive messages through the online selling site
A Glasgow man has pleaded guilty to stalking several women through the online selling site, Gumtree.
Michael Curling, 48, harassed a total of six victims he met on the site between July 2014 and 2017 from his then-home in Thornliebank, East Renfrewshire.
Curling would contact women who were selling items, and then send threatening messages when they refused to date him.
He told one 46-year-old woman that he would come to her home with a chainsaw.
Curling also contacted a 33-year-old woman who placed an ad requesting free furniture for her flat - he offered her kitchenware and agreed to meet in a Lidl car park in Barrhead.
He then sent continuous messages to the woman asking to go to her home for tea or coffee, and if she wanted to go for a drive in his car.
The woman was "alarmed" by Curling's behaviour which continued.
He then sent abusive messages, and threatened that he would "drag her out of her house and batter her".
Curling, now of Darnley, Glasgow, was not arrested until 2020.
He appeared in the dock to plead guilty to five charges of stalking and one for behaving in a threatening or abusive manner.
Sentencing was deferred pending background reports until next month, and Curling had his bail continued meantime.
Hear the latest news on Clyde 1 on FM, DAB, smart speaker or the Rayo app.