A woman posed as a 14-year-old girl to try to blackmail a man from Dundee.
Rebecca Bathe threatened to falsely expose the man as a paedophile following chats on dating site Badoo.
The 29-year-old shared screenshots of their conversations on Facebook, before sending the man a link to her PayPal account.
She sent a barrage of messages with a sinister countdown over a six-hour period.
Bathe was arrested after she emailed the man’s employers, alleging he was speaking to children online.
She admitted trying to extort the man on April 19 last year at an address in the city.
In a letter to Dundee Sheriff Court, Bathe said she had “good intentions” and was not interested in money.
The extortion attempt begins
Emma Farmer, prosecuting, said Bathe listed her age on the profile as 26 or 27 but told the man she was actually 14.
The court heard how the man was suspicious of this but continued conversing with her.
Things took a sinister turn after Bathe, of Dundonald Street, posted screenshots of the conversations on Facebook and appealed for him to get in touch.
Miss Farmer said: “Contact stopped and two to three weeks later, he was advised by a friend that the accused had made a public post requesting that he contact her.
“He thought she might be asking for help or distress and contacted her on her mobile number.
“She asked if he thought it was acceptable to message underage females.
“She threatened to expose this to his friends and family.”
Bathe said: “You went to meet a minor. Are you a paedo creep?”
Countdown
The man told Bathe to stop contacting him but she sent him a link to her PayPal account.
She said: “You know what to do then if you want me to go so bad,” before repeatedly messaging him while counting down from 30.
The messages were sent over a six-hour period from 12.30am.
The man’s employers received an email from Bathe about their conversation.
His employer quickly contacted the police and Bathe was arrested for trying to extort the man.
During her interview, she admitted responsibility but said she had no intention of extorting him.
Sheriff James MacDonald slammed Bathe’s conduct as “mean” and “cowardly” but stepped back from imposing a prison sentence.
As a direct alternative to custody, Bathe was ordered to perform 180 hours of unpaid work and placed on supervision for 12 months.
