UPDATE: |She ruined a sport star’s life and called a judge a liar – now she’s behind bars News

‘You caused significant harm to your victim and you have shown a contemptuous attitude to the court process’

An ‘attention seeking narcissist’ who waged a vicious online campaign about about ‘wholly untrue’ allegations of rape against a rugby union star is behind bars having breached a restraining order.

Sandra Ntonya left former Sale Sharks and England star Marland Yarde’s career in tatters. On February 26 she avoided being locked up for stalking when she appeared at Manchester Crown Court.

A judge heard there was a ‘realistic prospect’ of rehabilitation and that an immediate sentence would see her young son ‘suffer’. The judge however branded the 44-year-old old an ‘attention seeking narcissist’. The court heard Ntonya was a sex worker.

A restraining order was imposed, banning Ntonya from contacting Mr Yarde or posting about him online. She was also ordered to complete a six-month mental health treatment programme; 15 days of rehabilitation activity; and 100 hours of unpaid work.

That same day, Ntonya shared previous private messages between her and Mr Yarde online and tagged him. She went on to post daily about Mr Yarde.

At one stage, she ‘made a comparison with Jimmy Savile’ and posted that the sentencing judge was a ‘liar’ and ‘in the pay of the police’.

This week, she was jailed as Judge John Potter said: “I have no doubt whatsoever that when I imposed the restraining order upon you, you were well aware of its terms. It is extremely concerning to see you continue to defame him and have contact with him despite the restraining order being in place.

“You continued to post on the internet private messages between you and the victim and you ensured anyone would view these posts by tagging him in them. You made reference to the court process. Some [posts] are uncomplimentary about me.

“You described me as a liar and in the pay of the police. I want to make it clear I placed your comments about me out of my mind. You caused significant harm to your victim and you have shown a contemptuous attitude to the court process.”

Ntonya, from Gorton, was jailed for two years and two months.

The court previously heard Mr Yarde was a ‘well known rugby union player who played for a number of teams including Sale Sharks and England’.

In October 2021 he left his girlfriend as his life ‘spiralled out of control’, the court heard. He began ‘drinking to excess’ and made ‘bad choices’, prosecutor Jack Troup said.

He first came into contact with Ntonya on a night out in Manchester and ‘paid her for her services’, although he said they would only talk during visits to her home and they never had sex, according to the prosecutor.

The rugby player it was ‘distraction’ from his private life. During one visit, he gave another woman a ‘hoodie’ and put her to bed so she could sleep, the court was told.

During the early hours, following a call by the defendant, police arrived and arrested Mr Yarde on suspicion of raping the other woman, Mr Troup said.

The detective who arrived ‘noted that the defendant had called the national press before calling the police’, the prosecutor added.

Mr Yarde was released from police custody under investigation at 2am the following day. Officers took him back to his own home.

When he returned to training for Sale Sharks he was informed the defendant had ‘sold her story to the Daily Mail who were to publish a story’, said Mr Troup.

Mr Yarde returned to his parents’ home in Surrey. The story had a ‘devastating impact’ on his career, although he was not named in press reports at the time.

He remained ‘under investigation’ for five months’ until prosecutors decided to bring no charges’, the court was told.

Despite the decision, Mr Yarde’s rugby union career in England ‘was over’ and he moved to France, which meant he could no longer be considered for selection for England, the court was told.

A series of ‘negative’ social media posts penned by the defendant were shown in court, including when she was ‘angered by the fact she had been arrested’ and after it was decided to take no action against Mr Yarde, Mr Troup said.

Among the posts was a video of Mr Yarde’s car including its registration leaving her home. She continued to post messages online branding him a ‘rapist’, which referenced Mr Yarde ‘indirectly or directly’, the prosecutor said.

In one tweet, Ntonya is said to have written ‘gangsters may not dance to your tune at this point’ as ‘they may feel sickened’. She also called him a ‘dangerous predator – period’.

Mr Yarde was not in court, but wrote a statement which was referred to. Mr Troup said the impact was ‘profound’, adding that following the allegations his contract was terminated and his mental health suffered.

Mr Yarde was said to have sought the help of a psychiatrist and ‘contemplated suicide’. His relationships with a number of charities in England also came to an end.

In February, Ntonya – representing herself – repeatedly apologised, but said had been ‘under a lot of distress in [her] life’ at the time she made the 999 call and was arrested herself.

She insisted she was ‘under enormous turmoil’. “For me it was a cry out for help,” she told the court. This week, her barrister Constance Halliwell said: “She has expressed to me deep remorse and regret. She takes full responsibility and understands the position she finds herself in is entirely of her own making.

“She is deeply apologetic and says it was, in her words, a grave error of judgement.”