A Belfast man accused of harassing political party workers is to be barred from any DUP, Sinn Fein or Alliance offices, a High Court judge has ordered.
Mr Justice Kinney imposed the prohibition on Karlis Leists as part of tight conditions under which he was granted bail.
Prosecutors claimed the 37-year-old defendant has a fixation with some of Northern Ireland’s politicians and staff affiliated with their parties.
“He’s making them feel rather frightened by his behaviour and worried that it is escalating,” a Crown lawyer said.
Leists, of Kilburn Street in Belfast, is currently charged with one count of harassment on dates between September 2023 and February 2024.
The court heard the case relates to a member of the DUP, but that similar alleged incidents involving individuals associated with Sinn Fein and the Alliance Party are expected to be added to the prosecution.
Leists was arrested after a DUP representative informed police that they had been harassed by a man who refused to leave an advice centre in February this year.
“The male said to the worker that he was waiting for ‘the team’ and this made the worker feel uneasy,” prosecution counsel submitted.
She added: “It is continual harassment of staff, in particular a DUP worker who reported being followed around the area when she was leafleting homes.”
Defence barrister Turlough Madden described it as a “unique case” involving clear mental health difficulties.
He argued, however, that his client could be released from custody under strict orders not to go near political party offices.
Granting bail on those terms, Mr Justice Kinney prohibited Leists from contacting DUP, Sinn Fein or Alliance properties or approaching any of their staff.
The judge also excluded the accused from part of south Belfast and directed him to seek medical help from his GP.