James Forster (1933–2017) was an English academic and criminal who, between 1987 and 1999, orchestrated a hate campaign during which he sent 200 poison pen letters to residents of Manfield, district of North Yorkshire.
A former Open University lecturer, he was found guilty of three counts of threatening to destroy property, three of sending indecent mail, and one of incitement to commit burglary.
[2] Forster was born in 1933 and was employed by the National Coal Board for 11 years before attending Kings College at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
He rose through the ranks from staff tutor to senior lecturer between 1971 and 1998, including a spell as acting deputy regional director in 1995.
[3] Forster was arrested in 2001[6] and after an eight-day trial at Teesside Crown Court, a jury took four-and-a-quarter hours to find him guilty of three counts of threatening to destroy property, three of sending indecent mail, and one of incitement to commit burglary.