Police Ombudsman investigating Limavady PSNI over reporting of alleged crimes

The Police Ombudsman has confirmed it is investigating how Limavady PSNI handled a County Derry woman’s reporting of alleged crimes.  

The Dungiven mother has alleged that she is the victim of a harassment campaign by her former partner and claims the police in Limavady have failed to act despite reporting dozens of alleged incidents to them. 

The young mother, who preferred not to be named, said she began dating the man in 2024 for a short time before they parted ways. 

However, she claims that following the break-up the man has made threats to kill her and one of her children. 

She also believes the man has set up damaging fake social media accounts in her name and claims he has tried to befriend her children on the popular online platform, Roblox. 

The woman also alleges that the man stands outside the local primary school watching her as she picks up her children from school. 

“He is there almost every day I am there to pick up my kids. He just stands there and watches me. This behaviour has left me very frightened and I feel so intimidated.  I’m so worried for the safety of my children and fear that he will harm them,” she said. 

“I’ve rang the police in Limavady so many times to report these incidents and tell them that I feel I am under threat and they keep saying that he hasn’t done anything wrong, that he hasn’t committed a crime.”

The woman has alleged that the man also brutally assaulted her former partner outside a County Derry supermarket in January 2025 and claims that the PSNI in Limavady have failed to act or charge the accused with the offence. 

“That incident was captured on CCTV and when police arrived on the scene they didn’t even bother to question him (the man she accuses of attacking her ex-partner) or check his vehicle.

I contacted the PPS (Public Prosecution Service) recently and they said they don’t have any files on this incident,” she said. 

“I’m pretty sure if I attacked someone like that and beat them around the head then I would be in jail.”

The woman had to install CCTV cameras around her home and she claims these have captured footage of the man driving slowly past her home on numerous occasions. 

“I have contacted the police and have provided them with the footage but they fail to do anything about it. I don’t even feel safe in my own home. When I went to the police in Limavady and reported these incidents an officer told me that I should sell my house and move away. Why would I do that? I’ve worked hard to buy this house and have spent a lot of money doing it up. Why should I have to sell my home and move away just because they don’t want to deal with these issues?”

The woman says the whole ordeal has had a major impact on her life and her health. 

“This has ruined my life and it seems there is no end to it. He is relentless and I don’t know what he is capable of or what he is going to do next,” she said. 

The woman said she isn’t satisfied with how Limavady PSNI have handled the situation and believes they aren’t taking her concerns seriously. 

“There are so many advertising campaigns out there calling for an end to the violence against women and young girls and highlighting domestic abuse against women. The police are supposed to be out there to help you and to keep you safe but they aren’t doing their job. Every time I ring and report an incident to them they don’t do anything about it,” she said. 

The mother claims she also attended Limavady PSNI station in person to report an alleged serious incident involving the man but states that an officer on the front desk advised her to call the non-emergency contact number 101 instead. 

The woman said she was ‘fed up’ with the response she received from Limavady PSNI and decided to go to the PSNI in Derry instead. 

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“When I went into the station in Derry, I met a police officer and I sat down and told them everything from start to finish. I was there for six hours and it’s the first time I felt listened to. I also told them about how Limavady PSNI had mishandled the situation,” she said.

The woman has since applied for a non-molestation order against the man. 

She said she also contacted the Police Ombudsman as she believes Limavady PSNI have failed to address the alleged crimes she has reported to them.

A PSNI spokesperson said: “Due to ongoing investigations, we are unable to comment.”

A spokesperson for Police Ombudsman NI stated: “We can confirm that we received a complaint and an investigation has begun.”