Baby Reindeer: Law clerk Kobi Jane Langshaw jailed for five years for stalking two Perth men

Kobi Langshaw, the Perth law clerk whose obsession with two men led her to be dubbed Australia’s Baby Reindeer — has been jailed for five years for her “deliberate, unrelenting and carefully calculated” campaign against the duo.

For more than eight years, the 38-year-old infiltrated the lives of one man she was infatuated with and the other — his best friend — who she despised.

And it was because of her ongoing, unwavering and escalating pursuit of the pair — which included moving to the suburb where one of them lived and walking past his house every morning before he went to work — that Magistrate Belinda Coleman concluded that she was a high risk of reoffending and “very dangerous”.

“Having had the opportunity to closely observe you over a 15-day trial and subsequent court appearances… I believe I have gained valuable insight. In my view, you jump at the opportunity to provide explanations and excuses for your offending and relish being the centre of attention,” she told Langshaw.

“It would take me a whole day to outline the inconsistencies in the various reports and submissions that have been made.

“You are a very poor historian (regarding your upbringing and the offences). And you harass… out of a desire for retribution or power.

“You remain a high risk of reoffending.

“I consider you to be very dangerous.”

Ms Coleman said she had no doubt Langshaw suffered trauma in her childhood which manifested into her mental impairments — the court was told she had been diagnosed with anti-social personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder and demonstrated traits of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

But when it came to telling the truth about her past or her offending, she said it was much more difficult to ascertain.

Ms Coleman also told Langshaw she debated whether to transfer her matter to the District Court – where the penalties are higher – but decided to keep carriage of the matter out of fairness to her victims as well as her because she did not want to cause further delays.

She also said she believed the sentence she imposed would not have been vastly different to the one she would have received in the higher jurisdiction.

She also pleaded guilty to one count of breaching a violence restraining order in relation to a different man from 2019.

During her trial, it was revealed Langshaw’s intimidating behaviour against Mr Gardner began in 2015 when she developed an unnatural obsession towards him after he briefly acted for her in a family court matter.

This led him to take out a VRO against her. Mr Herbert took one out too.

Throughout 2020, Mr Gardner and his colleagues saw her numerous times walking within metres of them.

She took jobs in buildings within sight of his — and even leased a CBD flat within that perimeter.

That same year, Langshaw moved to a house in Caversham, knowing that both men she was banned from going near lived there.

Mr Gardner reported seeing her walking past every morning as he drove to work. He told police she had also ‘tailgated’ him in her car and repeatedly frequented a cafe or shop at the same time.

Langshaw also claimed she and Mr Gardner had been intimate with each other, a claim Ms Coleman flatly rejected.

“You have never been in a relationship with Mr Gardner,” Ms Coleman said. “I reject entirely that the relationship was anything other than a client relationship.”

Regarding Mr Herbert, Perth Magistrates Court was told Langshaw despised him and saw him as an obstacle to getting what she wanted — Mr Gardner.

Earlier, the police prosecutor described Langshaw as a “meta-stalker” — someone who goes over and above — and accused her of using the judicial process to gain contact with her victims.

He told the court police had tried to resolve the matters years ago, offering a very good plea deal. But he said Langshaw wanted to go to trial.

“We submit her intention was to use this process as part of her stalking behaviour,” he added.

In their victim impact statements, both men spoke of feeling “utterly helpless” and of not being believed.

They said at times they felt police did not take their complaints seriously and spent countless hours trying to prove the offences.

Ms Coleman said she had no doubt Langshaw’s persistent and unrelenting pursuit of both men would have a lasting effect on both of them and that they endured a significant level of scrutiny regarding their complaints because they are men.

She jailed Langshaw, who has been jailed previously for similar offences, for five years, backdated her sentence to August 2023 to take into account time already served and made her eligible for parole.