A rape victim whose attacker moved into a neighbouring property has been subjected to a stream of intimidation and harassment for the past two years, her partner says.

The man told The Southland Times yesterday his partner was living in fear after the man convicted of her rape seven years ago moved into a house next door to her Invercargill home.

Craig James Crofts, 48, was sentenced to four years' jail in 2004 for raping the woman.

Her partner said Crofts began the harassment while still in jail, sending the woman five or six "disgusting" letters of a sexually explicit nature for a period of about 12 months.

The letters eventually stopped, but during the past two years he and the woman had been verbally abused, intimidated and threatened, the man said.

About a year ago, two female friends of Crofts had appeared at the couple's front door about 10.30pm, asking for the victim and making derogatory remarks, which included calling her a dog.

On another occasion, the couple had been walking around the block when a carload of Crofts' friends yelled out more abuse at them, the man said.

He also caught Crofts "having a bit of a gander" through one of the rear windows of their property a year ago, and he himself had been approached and harassed by people while out shopping.

"I can handle that myself but it's intimidating for her because there's no-one to protect her," the man said.

The victim had not had any problems by herself because he now accompanied her virtually everywhere as she was too frightened to go out by herself, he said.

The woman's recovery after the traumatic events was being hampered by Crofts' proximity to their property, he said.

"She's coming away all right but she just regresses every time she thinks of meeting this silly bugger outside somewhere."

Crofts' decision to move into a property that neighboured his victim's was also intimidating, the man said. "You've got to think to yourself there's a reason he's gone and moved next door, don't you?"

alana.dixon@stl.co.nz