Blackpool woman jailed for Lancashire Police threat texts

Tracy Partington was described as a "difficult thorn in the side" of police

An "unpleasant" woman who sent police thousands of threatening texts has been jailed for 27 months for harassment.

Tracey Partington's messages, which often led to officers being deployed to check if they were credible, had been "detrimental" to staff well-being, Lancashire Police said.

The 41-year-old, from Blackpool, tried to "cover her tracks" by sending texts from different mobiles, the force said.

A single officer received more than 1,000 "vile and disgusting" texts.

Det Ch Insp Lee Wilson said Partington, of Lonsdale Road, sent messages "almost daily", including ones threatening to attack police officers using weapons or explosive devices.

"These were deployed to, depleting the force's ability to answer genuine calls for service," he said.

Her campaign of abuse began in 2017, pausing briefly when she was jailed for four months the following year, a force spokesman said.

He said despite her being given a restraining order, the threats began again as soon as she was released.

At Preston Crown Court, Partington admitted putting a person in fear of violence and breaching a restraining order, between September and October 2019.

Alongside her jail sentence, she was also made the subject of a further restraining order, barring her from contacting Lancashire Police or its employees, except in a genuine matter requiring police involvement.

Welcoming Tuesday's sentence, Det Ch Insp Wilson said Partington had "proved to be a recurring, unpleasant and difficult thorn in the side of Lancashire Police for several years".