A CONVICTED sex offender who fell out with a former girlfriend, used Facebook to offer a £1,000 reward to anybody prepared to do her “serious damage”.

The chilling threat came from 29-year-old Michael Reid as part of a terrifying eight-day campaign of harassment he waged, which also saw someone threaten to chop her head off and cut her into small pieces.

Carlisle Crown Court heard his victim was a woman who had been in a short relationship with him in May and June of last year.

Reid, formerly of Egremont, admitted harassment and was jailed for 16 months.

Kim Whittlestone, prosecuting, outlined how the relationship ended shortly after it began, with the woman reporting the defendant to the police over serious allegations which were not prosecuted.

Using other people and mobile phones, Reid took to social media, giving the woman the impression she was being followed. Naming her on Facebook, he offered £1,000 to anyone who did “serious damage to her”, said the barrister.

“There were text messages telling her to watch her back when she was in the supermarket,” said Miss Whittlestone. “The offending occurred over a relatively short period but it caused her real fear for her safety.”

In a statement, the woman said the harassment gave her sleepless nights and she had to consider the possibility that Reid had got somebody else involved.

“I was nervous and had to stay alert when I was out, and didn’t enjoy it,” she said. “I was nervous about leaving the house; and could not do it without having someone with me.”

She still needed that level of support, she said. “To this day, I remain nervous and don’t tell people where I live. I don’t tend to enter into relationships or friendships easily. I want to get across that Michael left a permanent scar on me, which has left me with a lack of trust towards others.”

The court heard how in 2016, at Carlisle Crown Court, Reid was jailed after he admitted two child sex offences: causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and meeting a child following sexual grooming.

It also heard how, on an earlier occasion, Reid admitted two breaches of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order - one by having an internet enabled device which he should not have had and also being in a house where there was a child.

His defence barrister Brendan Burke said Reid, now living at Mursley Court, Stony Stratford, Milton Keynes, had left the county to start a new life. “It was an effort to make a fresh start,” said the barrister.

He now worked full-time in a warehouse and there had been no attempts to contact his victim.

“He’s settled and the relationship is over,” said the barrister, conceding that Reid had not dealt remotely properly with the break up of his relationship with the woman. He had acted stupidly without any real thought, added Mr Burke.

Judge Nicholas Barker said the harassment left his victim fearing violence.

He told Reid: “You made threatening phone calls, and caused threatening calls to be made to her, with references to someone chopping her head off and cutting her into small pieces.”

He added: “It was a sustained campaign by you.”

The judge banned Reid from contacting the woman for 10 years.