A former Free Church of Scotland minister who posed as a lesbian on social media in a bid to extort sexual images from his victim has been sentenced.
David Finlay Macdonald, from Stornoway, pretended to be a female called Eilidh on MSN messenger when chatting to his female victim between January and December in 2010.
The 32-year-old then threatened to expose sensitive information about her if she did not send him sexually explicit images of herself.
The sleaze pleaded guilty to one charge of attempted extortion at Stornoway Sheriff Court in November last year.
He has now been ordered to perform 180 hours of unpaid work and must pay £750 compensation after being sentenced on Tuesday.
He also faced two similar accusations relating to incidents in 2015 which allegedly involved two other women but his not guilty pleas were accepted by the Crown Office.
The woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, told the court she felt “sickened to my stomach” after realising that Macdonald was trying to blackmail her.
His conviction has been welcomed by the Procurator Fiscal for Grampian, Highland and Islands Andy Shanks.
He said: “David Macdonald’s deliberate and persistent deceit caused his victim great distress.
"This prosecution should serve as a warning to others that we take crimes of this nature seriously.
"I would urge anyone who has been the victim of similar offending to come forward and seek support."
A spokesperson for the church said: "The Free Church of Scotland is deeply dismayed that the former assistant minister of one of our congregations is guilty of such behaviour.
"Our ministers and students are expected to live to the highest moral and ethical standards. Moreover, the Free Church takes very seriously any allegation that such standards have been compromised.
"We extend our support, sympathy and pastoral concern to the victim and all involved."
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