A tenant caused up to £20,000 damage to his home in a revenge attack because he was being evicted for not paying the rent, Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday.

Garry Mulcahy sent a video of a “waterfall” flowing through the living room ceiling to his landlord pretending that he was in Ireland and a friend was staying at the property.

Mulcahy, 34, admitted criminal damage at the address in Derby Street, Clayton, Bradford, on September 2 last year.

While on bail, he burgled his former partner at night, drove off in her car and sent her a photo of himself naked except for a hat and glasses he had stolen when he took her bag.

Mulcahy, who was remanded to Leeds Prison, admitted burgling the house, taking the vehicle without consent and fraudulently using the woman’s bank card to buy £96 worth of goods.

Prosecutor Lucy Brown said he had missed the last two rent payments at the house in Derby Street and the landlord told him he was serving an eviction notice.

At 10.15pm, Mulcahy rang him to say there was “water everywhere.” The call was followed by a video of water streaming through the ceiling.

Miss Brown said the shower head was on the bathroom floor turned fully on. The water caused extensive damage to the plasterwork, flooring, electrics and bathroom. The remedial work was estimated at more than £9,000, with a bill of up to £20,000 to complete the repairs and redecoration.

The insurance company had paid out £5,000, the maximum sum on the policy to cover malicious damage.

On September 27, Mulcahy threw a stone slab through the kitchen window at his former partner’s home while she was sleeping at night.

He broke in and took her handbag, keys and car, following up the burglary by sending the photo.

He was arrested at a hotel in Leeds in possession of stolen property. The car was recovered nearby.

The woman, who was bombarded with phone calls and emails from Mulchay after the relationship ended, was left shaken and scared by the break-in. She felt that he posed an immediate danger to her.

Miss Brown said the attack on the rented house was out of revenge because Mulcahy knew he was being evicted.

He had contacted both the landlord and the woman from prison and they asked for re-straining orders to protect them in the future.

Mulcahy had a previous conviction dating from 2017 for an assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Ian Howard said in mitigation that he had a paranoid personality disorder that could be addressed in the community.

He had spent five and a half months in custody during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Mulcahy knew the relationship was over and was keen to normalise his life in another part of the country.

Judge Colin Burn sentenced him to two years imprisonment, suspended for two years, with 180 hours of unpaid work and a requirement to attend the Building Better Relationships Programme.

He made restraining orders banning him from contacting his victims for ten years.