IT LOOKS like a peaceful residential street.
But behind the calm appearance, residents of Wembley Park Avenue been the subject of a bizarre hate campaign at the hands of pensioner Robert Cain.
At 70, he has now become the oldest man in Hull to be given an antisocial behaviour order (Asbo).
"It has been four years of hell," said Carole Cussons, 66, who lives opposite Cain.
On the surface, his bungalow does not look like the home of a man who would be given an Asbo.
The gardens surrounding it are perfectly manicured and the house is neat and tidy. The only clue all is not well are the CCTV cameras dotted around the walls.
Eight years ago, Mrs Cussons and her husband Sid, 74, moved into their home opposite.
"We though it was an absolutely beautiful place to live and all of the neighbours were really good," said Mr Cussons.
For the first four years the family were living there, relations with Cain were like that of any good neighbours.
"I looked after his bungalow when he went on holiday," said Mrs Cussons.
"He gave me a spare key to his house and his alarm code. Then one day, he just turned."
The couple believe Cain's change in attitude was sparked by their friendship with his next-door neighbours.
For three years, they had been embroiled in a dispute with Cain, who believed his next-door neighbours had once thrown cigarette butts into his garden.
When the Cussons became closer to the couple, Cain began targeting them too.
"It started with little things and got worse over time," said Mrs Cussons.
"I have been followed, threatened and bad-mouthed to the rest of the neighbours."
The stress of being victimised put the couple's 47-year marriage under strain – as well as Mr Cussons' health.
He has a cancerous tumour on his liver and suffers from rheumatoid arthritis.
"When my arthritis plays up, I struggle to walk," he said.
"If I saw him when I was like that, he would mimic me by limping and would laugh.
"He has done things I would never do to my worst enemy.
"I'm not supposed to get stressed because it makes my conditions worse but he has never stopped giving us grief.
"It really has been hell. It has definitely affected our marriage, because we were under so much pressure all the time. It just got on top of us.
"He would stand outside his house dressed all in black, with his arms folded, just staring at us. You would think our doors were on the same hinges because if I opened my front door, his would open at the same time.
"It has been making my health a lot worse because of the stress. It is not what you need at our age – or his."
Cain moved to the street with his second wife around ten years ago. After a peaceful couple of years, he fell out with his next-door neighbours, accusing them of throwing cigarette butts into his garden.
As the years went on, Cain began to target other neighbours too. He would bang his dustbin lid, throw eggs on driveways, display mocking items in his window and put witch dolls on lampposts.
"He believed his neighbours were responsible for the cigarette ends in his garden," said PCSO Calvert.
"He fell out with them over it, which was about seven years ago, and he has been behaving in this way since.
"He has driven his car at a neighbour, nearly hitting her, shouted over the fence and has waved a garden hoe around in a threatening manner."
Most of his behaviour was caught on CCTV, installed by his neighbours after paint was thrown on their cars.
PCSO Calvert said: "Since they put the cameras up, they have caught him doing all these things."
One of his other neighbours, who did not wish to be named, said: "What he has done is unbelievable."
During a two-day hearing to decide whether he should be given the Asbo, Cain's own daughter gave evidence against him.
"She said he has been like it all his life," said PCSO Calvert.
"She also said he has done exactly the same sort of thing at previous addresses."
However, since Cain was given an interim Asbo earlier this year, his behaviour has improved.
"It has changed, but only for a couple of weeks at a time before he does something again," said PCSO Calvert.
"We were talking about something that was happening once a day and now it is only every two or three weeks, so it is an improvement.
"Hopefully, the full order will make that even better."
If Cain does breach the order, he would face being arrested and could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.
"The police really have put a lot of work into this," said Mrs Cussons.
"We are just so glad it's finally over. It is a big weight off our shoulders."
