A B.C. man who harassed and threatened a woman repeatedly via text has been given a conditional discharge and two years’ probation.
On Jan. 22, Kamyar Bahrami pleaded guilty to uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm in Vancouver Provincial Court.
The 28-year-old had also been charged with criminal harassment.
Crown prosecutor Louise Gauld and defence lawyer David Ferguson made a joint sentencing submission to Judge Patrick Doherty, a submission he accepted May 7.
“He made some quite concerning threats,” Doherty said. “The victim, quite understandably, found the threats to be very frightening.”
Gauld said Bahrami had met the woman once when she was in a New Westminster restaurant in January 2023. He somehow got her phone number and texted her.
“She ended up blocking him,” Gauld said.
The woman also told Bahrami to stop contacting her but he began contacting her from other numbers.
“He said he’d attend her residence and beat her and that she deserved to die,” Gauld told the court.
“The threats were frightening to her,” Gauld said.
The prosecutor said when Bahrami was arrested, he didn’t believe there was a problem until he was given a restraining order.
Gauld said it was not the first time Bahrami had exhibited such behaviour.
“He had been warned several times in the past,” said the Crown lawyer.
Gauld said the victim had been willing to testify had the case gone to trial. The judge said the guilty plea spared the victim that trauma.
Ferguson explained that Bahrami, who immigrated to Canada as a child, has struggled with mental health issues that he is working on with support from his family, a psychiatrist and a psychologist.
“He struggles with these intense thoughts and can’t control those thoughts,” said Ferguson, who explained his client has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
The judge said that work was to Bahrami’s credit, and that he had taken “serious steps” to address his issues.
“Being charged with this offence was very alarming to him and his family and they’ve taken extreme steps to ensure he gets treatment,” Ferguson said.
