who then does a runner after being found guilty of harassing the England star
- 'I'll see you soon, bye,' she tells the player as he leaves the witness box
'Disturbed': Suzanne Ibru has been found guilty of harassment after Rio Ferdinand, seen arriving at Macclesfield Magistrates' Court, said he was unhappy that she turned up at his Cheshire home
A woman who repeatedly turned up at the home of Premiership footballer Rio Ferdinand told him: 'I'll see you soon' as she was convicted of harassment yesterday.
But Susanne Ibru, 38, disappeared from court before sentencing, having cross-examined the Manchester United player herself.
Under her questioning Ferdinand had told the court that he felt 'angry and upset' by her appearances at his Cheshire property.
She had twice disturbed the Manchester United player and his wife while they were asleep, claiming she needed to speak to him, the court heard.
As he left the witness box following the grilling, she said to him: 'I'll see you soon, bye.'
However, after being told Ferdinand's wife Rebecca, 30, was excused from giving evidence today after giving birth to their third child at the weekend she left the court without warning.
Ibru was convicted at Macclesfield Magistrates' Court in her absence.
A warrant was issued for Ibru by District Judge Nicholas Sanders, who asked for her to be brought back before him for sentencing.
He said it was 'quite clear' to him that the prosecution case against her was proved.
He said: 'Mr Ferdinand is a high-profile footballer and whilst there will always be occasions where he is exposed to public and press scrutiny, the fact is that when he is in the privacy of his own home with his family he has a right to expect to be left alone.'
Ibru, formerly of Peckham, south London, but now of Queens Road, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, was alleged to have turned up at the footballer's home in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, three times between February and June last year, the court heard.
Ian Davies, for the prosecution, said the first incident happened in the early hours of February 21.
Ferdinand and his wife, Rebecca, were asleep in bed when she woke him after hearing the buzzer of the intercom at the entrance gate to their home.
Unwanted visitor: Susanne Ibu was said to have turned up at Rio Ferdinand's home in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, on several occasions
The footballer told District Judge Nicholas Sanders that he went to the bathroom window to see who was at the gates and saw a figure wearing a hooded top in the darkness.
He said he shouted down to see who it was and the figure looked up and he was able to see it was Ibru.
Asked by Mr Davies how he felt, Ferdinand said: 'At first I was angry and upset but then disturbed, really, because I have got a young family and this was not the time or the place to be coming to speak to me.'
The player called his club's security staff, who alerted police, and then watched on his CCTV as Ibru walked away.
She was stopped by police at the end of the road, the court heard, and later allowed on her way.
Ibru returned to the house on June 16, the court was told. Ferdinand said he spotted her on the road opposite his house as he returned home that evening at around 8pm.
'I'm not just a fan': Susanne Ibru, the woman accused of stalking footballer Rio Ferdinand, allegedly said she urgently needed to speak to him after appearing at his home last year
He called the police and decided to speak to her to ensure she did not leave before they arrived.
'My main concern was to keep her there until the police arrived,' he said.
'I asked why she had come to my house and she told me "things needed to be resolved", and that they couldn't be resolved until we spoke.
'I told her I would speak to her then but she said it would take a couple of hours.'
Asked by Mr Davies if he had any idea, then or now, why Ibru attended his home and wanted to speak to him, the footballer said: 'No.'
Mr Davies asked: 'Did she suggest any reason for coming to your house as opposed to the club, the training ground or Old Trafford?'
Ferdinand said she said words along the lines of: 'I'm not just a fan', and 'Don't associate me with being a fan, I'm more than that'.
He added that the second visit caused him to consider upgrading the security at his house.
'Again, I was disturbed,' he said. 'I had been out of the house and it really alarmed me (that she was there).'
Police attended and Ibru was given a formal warning to leave the couple alone.
But her third alleged visit came just two days later, in the early hours of June 18.
Again the footballer and his wife were woken by the buzzer from their gates so he called police and Ibru was arrested.
'The safety of my family is as huge to me as it is to anyone,' he said. 'Then you have people at your door talking about things that don't make sense.
'You want to be left alone with your family.'
Ibru, wearing a black dress, put it to him that she had been to his home about four or five times during the last four years.
She asked him: 'Do you think that amounts to harassment?'
The footballer replied: 'Yes.'
Concerned: Rio Ferdinand, pictured with his wife Rebecca, said Susanna Ibru's alleged appearances at his home left him fearful for his family
She also asked him if he remembered the first time they met, in 1998 at the home of his stepfather's mother.
He said he did not remember the occasion.
Ibru said: 'I remember that very well - the first time setting my eyes on you, not just in a newspaper.'
She then put it to Ferdinand that, although she admitted visiting his home, it did not amount to harassment.
The District Judge intervened and said the decision to prosecute was not a matter for the witness.
Ferdinand said: 'I called the police because I didn't want you at my house.'
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