Revenge porn threatlands man in dock

His plan backfired completely, Lanark Sheriff Court heard on Thursday, when Brian Hamilton appeared for sentencing for telling the woman he would send explicit pictures he’d taken of her to her family and friends if she didn’t keep quiet.

The 43-year-old of 23 Whiteshaw Crescent had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to having, on December 14 last year, sent a text message to the woman he had met while a passenger in his cab that was “grossly offensive or of an indecent or menacing nature in that he threatened to send images of a sexual nature of her to her friends and family members”.

After background reports had been drawn up on him, he re-appeared for sentence on Thursday and Depute Fiscal Liam Haggart told the court that Hamilton had threatened to send to others close to the woman the eighteen images “of an intimate nature” after the relationship between them had ended.

A solicitor for Hamilton explained the background to his client’s actions, saying that his client had been in a long-term marriage when the relationship started; when the affair ended, threats by his ex-mistress to reveal certain details of their relationship to Hamilton’s wife “led to him making a counter-threat to send the images”.

Hamilton’s solicitor said he had stressed to Hamilton that he could be facing a jail sentence; Hamilton also faced possible action by the taxi licensing authority: “single females being in the cab with him now being an issue”.

Sheriff Pattison placed Hamilton on an 18 month Community Payback Order with supervision, along with an order that he carry out 180 hours of unpaid work for the community within the next six months.