Gemma Collins left 'terrified' after being sent 'rat poison' to her Essex home

Reality TV star Gemma Collins has reportedly upped security at her Essex home after a package containing "rat poision" was sent to her home.

The 44-year-old, who lives with businessman fiancé Rami Hawash, is believed to have invested in 24-hour guard dog patrols and alerted Essex Police after the arrival of the package, which also contained a nasty letter.

It comes just a couple of weeks after the Celebrity Big Brother icon was left 'shaken and very scared for her safety' after receiving a hateful letter from a man who wrote about his extreme dislike for her.

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It seems the escalation of hate mail, from a letter to "rat poision", has left Gemma "terrified" and fearful for her beloved pets who live with her in her stunning countryside home.

A source close to Gemma told The Sun: “The latest delivery was really scary for Gemma and she was genuinely terrified. It was delivered by the postman, but it had no postage stamp on it.

"Gemma was worried because it contained rat poison, especially as she has animals at her home. She was already liaising with police over her earlier hate letter.

"It was from a man who expressed his extreme dislike for her and used menacing language. The police have been fantastic and have some new leads. Gemma’s trying not to let it get to her and is doing her best to focus on summer projects.”

Sadly, it’s not the first time the star has had a brush with the dark side of fame. She told a podcast in May that she has had several stalkers over the years, who had threatened her and sent “terrifying” letters to her boutique in Brentwood.

She said it “played havoc on her mind” and was the reason she moved away from front-of-house work at the boutique. “

No one would believe the b****y crap I’ve had to deal with,” she confessed. “I’ve had a woman stalker who wrote me a letter in white gloves and wanted to kill me. People would wish me dead.

"I’d get all sorts at the shop. People are weird. And that’s why I came away from my shop.”

And, in 2019, it was revealed that Gemma had called the police after being targeted by a stalker – a man who she claimed had previously verbally abused her outside her home over six days. The experience was so traumatic that it made her question if she could stay in Essex.

The Mirror has reached out to Gemma's representatives and Essex Police for comment.

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