Man jailed for stalking and 'revenge porn'

A man who shared intimate pictures of a woman online has been jailed for 27 months.

Mark Harrison from Stoke-on-Trent admitted stalking involving serious distress, and disclosing private sexual photographs with intent to cause distress.

The 41-year-old from Weston Coyney posted the images on social media using fake accounts, leaving his victim feeling "very alone and embarrassed."

He was sentenced at Chester Crown Court on Monday, placed under a 15-year restraining order, and will have his electronic devices and digital storage destroyed.

The images Harrison shared had been taken almost 20 years ago, and his victim was made aware by other people that they had been put online, said Cheshire Police.

He used social media accounts set up in the the victim's name and false names, and shared the photographs with her family and friends, as well as on local social media pages.

Harrison was arrested in August 2022, where the images were found on his devices, as were internet searches for the woman's name.

His victim said that for a long time she felt "very alone and embarrassed" about what was happening to her, despite having done nothing wrong.

She approached a "revenge porn" helpline, which searches for intimate images and asks websites to take them down, and said they had "really helped" over the years.

Det Con Lauren Constable from Cheshire Police praised the woman's bravery for reporting what happened and said: "Harrison’s behaviour and actions have had a significant impact on his victim.

"She has suffered in every aspect of her life and has been subjected to an immeasurable amount of distress because of him."

The detective stressed that sharing private images was a serious offence, and anybody else facing a similar situation should contact police.

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