An Angus man escaped a jail sentence after stalking a woman and threatening to assault her until she lost her baby.
Robert Ryan, 28, subjected his victim to a horrific year of abuse between November 15, 2013, and December 30, 2014.
Ryan, from Montrose, admitted two charges of stalking and wasting police time at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
He narrowly avoided jail when he was sentenced on Friday.
Ryan admitted calling police to claim a woman was being held against her will and raped on April 27, 2014.
He also sent text messages threatening to assault a woman until she lost her baby.
Depute fiscal Saima Rasheed told the court the victim had found the accused “controlling”.
The court heard that Ryan sent text messages which caused her to be frightened, prompting a call to the police.
In November 2013, Ryan ordered a new SIM card from his victim’s telephone provider and used it to send text messages.
The following month the woman noticed she could not access her Facebook account because her password had been changed.
Ryan later admitted to the complainer’s stepdad that he had “hijacked” the account and sent messages to her family and friends.
He had also contacted the local authority and cancelled her tenancy, stating that she was moving home.
The court also heard that Ryan had sparked a police investigation by texting a police service centre stating that a woman had been raped in Inverbervie.
Investigating officers soon discovered that it was a false claim and arrested him.
Defence lawyer Norman Fraser said it had to be accepted that the offences were serious crimes.
He said: “He tells me that he has no vengeful feelings towards the lady concerned.
“Mr Ryan fully accepts his responsibility for the offences and he is genuinely remorseful for his behaviour.”
He said his client, who was recently identified by a psychologist as having traits of autism spectrum disorder, no longer used social media sites.
Sheriff Annella Cowan told him that it was a “vicious” and “manipulative” course of conduct.
She said she had considered sending him to prison for 18 months and warned him if he stepped out of line he would be jailed.
He was placed under two years of supervision and given a community payback order and told to carry out 240 hours of community service.