A company CEO was left living in fear of her boyfriend’s ex-wife after she mounted a horrific smear campaign, calling her a ‘homewrecker, fraudster and a slut’.
Stephanie Hughes, 39, was bombarded with hateful messages by bitter Christina Corish after she started a relationship with Corish’s ex-husband Richard.
Although she had split from Richard three years earlier, Corish contacted Miss Hughes’s friends through social media in a fit of spite, telling them: ‘She is sleeping with my husband’.
Corish, of Waterloo, Liverpool, pleaded guilty to harassing Miss Hughes between August 2023 and February 2025, at Sefton Magistrate’s Court.
During her 18-month campaign, the 37-year-old mother-of-two also contacted other parents at the school which the victim’s children attend, accusing her of having an ‘affair’ and branding her a ‘home wrecking whore with saggy bits.’
Mother-of-four Miss Hughes of Cheshire, who runs a travel agency and a competitions company, initially ignored the personal slurs but reported her to police after she left a malicious review on her Facebook business page on Valentine’s Day, falsely calling her a ‘conwoman’.
Corish was sentenced to a 12 month community order with a requirement that she completes 15 days of rehabilitation activity and was banned from contacting Miss Hughes for five years under the terms of a restraining order.
Corish had a previous conviction for criminal damage from last year after smashing windows at the home of her ex-husband’s mother.
In a personal statement, Miss Hughes said: ‘This has been one of the most terrifying and damaging experiences, and it has seeped into every part of my life.
‘I felt exposed, scared and broken. She did not just target me. She contacted clients and colleagues and tried to ruin my reputation and humiliate me.’
‘I was so embarrassed and ashamed I stopped posting online. I built my travel business on social media but I could not log on as the fear and shame were overwhelming.
‘She even sent messages to mothers at the school calling me a whore, accusing me of having an affair. I felt sick.’
The Corishes had married in 2015 and had two children together, but split up in 2020 for undisclosed reasons.
The court heard the hate campaign began in August 2023 after engineer Mr Corish began a relationship with Miss Hughes whilst they were joint directors at her company Celestial Prizes.
In a detailed statement, Miss Hughes said the ordeal began with a series of cryptic messages from a woman demanding to know if she knew a man named Richard.
After ignoring repeated attempts to contact her, including a missed call on Facebook Messenger, she finally responded, only to be met with a barrage of abuse.
Corish said Richard was her husband and called Miss Hughes a ‘slut’ and a ‘white whore’, accusing her of sleeping with a married man and destroying a family.
According to Miss Hughes, Richard had told her he had been separated for three years.
The situation escalated further on New Year’s Day 2024, when friends began receiving unsolicited messages from the ex-wife alleging an affair.
The harassment soon turned more personal and invasive with Miss Hughes receiving emails calling her a ‘home wrecking whore with saggy bits’, while Richard was also targeted with similar messages.
Corish threatened to tell Miss Hughes’ colleagues about the alleged affair, leaving her gripped with anxiety.
The most alarming incident came on Valentine’s Day when she publicly attacked Miss Hughes’ business on Facebook, posting a comment on her company’s profile, accusing her of being a fraudster and conning customers before also finding Miss Hughes’ home address via Companies House which she said: ‘Really increased my anxiety’.
The mother added: ‘I’m still trying to pick up the pieces now and I still feel I am waiting for the next thing. My confidence is completely gone.
‘I lost money because I could not work but worse than that I lost part of myself.
‘My children were affected too. They saw me struggling with anxiety, constantly in hospital and afraid.
‘No child should have to witness their mum going through something like that. I am still trying to rebuild my life. I just want to feel myself again and protect my children.
‘They have to see that actions have consequences. I want to show my children you should stand up to bullies even though you are afraid.’
Angela Conlan, prosecuting, said: ‘When she initially responded to the defendant she did answer quite reasonably to get information and got abuse back.
‘Having heard the victim statement and the impact, the harm is quite serious in this one.’
Corish had a previous conviction for criminal damage from last year after smashing windows at the home of her ex-husband’s mother.
He resigned as director of Celestial Prizes last January.
In mitigation, defence lawyer Peter Green, said: ‘The defendant feels that her ex-husband has abandoned her and started a new relationship whilst she has been left bringing up two children more or less on her own.
‘He pays £7 a week for the children which is a very nominal amount in this day and age and she let her frustration get the better of her. She behaved, she concedes, totally inappropriately.’
Corish who wept in the dock told the hearing: ‘I am not going to contact her. I have no interest in making any contact anymore. That was the last time.’
Sentencing her, District Judge Paul Healey said: ‘You embarked upon a course of harassment against Stephanie Hughes when she was totally blameless.
‘She had nothing to do with you but she was worried about who you were, why you were contacting her, the abuse, the threats to her.
‘You caused real issues for her business and family. This has got to stop now.’
