AN IRVINE man who planted intimate pictures of his former partner in a postbox for her mother to find in a cruel act of revenge porn has been ordered to stay away from his ex for a year.

Reece McCrory carried out the sick act on two separate occasions in November 2021, leaving a total of nine explicit images in a mailbox outside the home which the victim shared with her mum.

The 24-year-old pleaded guilty to the offence earlier this year and appeared at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court last week for sentencing.

Friday’s hearing was told that the accused and the complainer had been in a relationship for around nine months but separated in early June 2021.

The procurator fiscal depute said: “In the afternoon of November 19, 2021 the complainer was upstairs within the locus and her mother attended at an outdoor postbox at the bottom of the front garden.

“She picked up from that postbox six intimate photos of the complainer who she believed to be her daughter.

“In some of them her face was visible, in others her genitals were visible.”

The photos were said to have been printed but not addressed to anyone, and they were not in an envelope and had no writing on them.

Police were later contacted and the photos, which were in paper form, were seized.

The fiscal depute added: “The complainer confirmed she sent them to the accused.

“On November 23 the complainer was informed by her mother that three further photos of an intimate nature were within the postbox in the garden; they were in the same format.

“She said she had not sent them to anyone but they were in a folder on her phone on a social media app.”

The second batch of photos were said to have been stored in a folder on Snapchat - an app used for instant messaging, photo and video sharing.

McCrory had accessed them via the social media platform in July and October last year, and police traced an IP address which matched devices belonging to him.

The fiscal depute said: “A police search recovered mobile devices with explicit images which matched those sent. He [McCrory] said he used his work printer and laminator to print them.”

McCrory’s defence solicitor told the court his client accepted full responsibility for his actions and “displays significant remorse”. The solicitor added that McCrory had no previous convictions or other pending cases.

Sheriff Murdoch MacTaggart issued a community payback order as punishment, with a supervision requirement for 12 months and 80 hours of unpaid work to be completed within six months.

McCrory, of Ranken Crescent, was also handed a non-harassment order and must not contact or communicate with his former partner for 12 months.