A man who told his Islamic convert stepfather to “go and eat bacon” in a religiously and racially offensive Facebook tirade has been ordered to carry out 80 hours unpaid work.
Dean McAndrew from Dundee used the social media site to contact Christopher McAndrew from the Westport area of Arbroath in early December.
Forfar sheriff court previously heard the victim is in the process of converting to Islam and had completed paperwork to change his name.
He was not a Facebook user, but did access Messenger as a means of communicating with his family.
Depute fiscal Stewart Duncan said that in the weeks leading up to the offence, the 28-year-old accused had been having some difficulties and received some advice from his stepfather on November 5.
“At 6.49pm on November 6 he messaged witness McAndrew ‘go and eat some bacon’,” said the fiscal.
McAndrew described the man as “black” and used an obscenity.
He went on: “Even better, go to the mosque with your package, boom you’re dead.”
Sentence had been deferred on first offender McAndrew for social work reports to be obtained, and a bail condition imposed banning him from contacting his stepfather.
McAndrew, of Aboyne Avenue, Dundee, admitted using a public communications network to send grossly offensive or indecent, obscene or menacing messages with racially and religiously offensive content to Mr McAndrew in Westport, Arbroath on December 6, and threatened him with violence.
Sheriff Pino DI Emilio told the accused:”It is simply unacceptable. I understand you accept you were very much out of order in expressing yourself in such offensive terms.”
More on this story in tomorrow’s edition of The Courier, also available as a digital edition.
