Couple describe fear in case against Iris Helga Jónatansdóttir

A man and his fiancée told a court they had lived in fear because of Iris Helga Jónatansdóttir, as the main hearing in her case continued on Tuesday. The couple gave evidence at the Reykjanes District Court, where many of the charges concern alleged offences against them, mbl.is reported.

Jónatansdóttir is charged with stalking, defamatory allegations, forgery, making false accusations and violations of child protection laws.

The man said he met Jónatansdóttir in 2021 after she contacted him on Instagram. They began a short relationship. He later found a broken flower vase by his front door, he told the court, and shortly afterwards Jónatansdóttir arrived at his home with a jar that she said contained a fetus. She had told him she was pregnant by him and later had an abortion, according to his testimony.

He said the situation escalated after he began a relationship with another woman, who is now his fiancée. She said she had been friends with Jónatansdóttir but had blocked her on social media months before meeting her fiancé, citing Jónatansdóttir’s conduct and alleged defamation online.

The couple said messages had been sent to their friends, relatives and family members, and that their job security was targeted through messages to their employers. The messages accused the man of sexual abuse and his fiancée of drug smuggling, they said. They also said they did not know the man who admitted in court on Tuesday to smearing dirt on the door handles of their home and car.

The couple said they installed a security doorbell and did not feel safe in their daily lives. They kept doors locked and windows closed, they said. The woman said she could not take walks with her child, and that they spoke to staff at their children’s preschools to explain that Jónatansdóttir and her family were not allowed to approach them.

The man denied sexually abusing Jónatansdóttir’s daughter. He called the allegation “disgusting” and said it was wrong to accuse people of things that had not happened.