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| April Jones Facebook posts: Sam Busby given suspended sentence | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A man who posted offensive comments on Facebook about missing five-year-old April Jones has been given a six-week suspended jail sentence. | |
| Sam Busby, 18, of Macintyre Road, Worcester, admitted sending a grossly offensive public electronic communication. | Sam Busby, 18, of Macintyre Road, Worcester, admitted sending a grossly offensive public electronic communication. |
| Worcester Magistrates' Court also ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and gave him a curfew. | Worcester Magistrates' Court also ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and gave him a curfew. |
| Busby told the BBC his postings were "a stupid thing to do". | Busby told the BBC his postings were "a stupid thing to do". |
| The court heard he deleted his Facebook page shortly after posting the sexually explicit comments in October. | |
| 'Deeply ashamed' | 'Deeply ashamed' |
| The chair of the magistrates bench said his actions could have caused "an immense amount of distress" to April's family at a very sensitive time. | |
| She was last seen in a street near her home in Machynlleth, Powys, on 1 October. | |
| Mark Bridger, 46, has been charged with her murder. | Mark Bridger, 46, has been charged with her murder. |
| The prosecution told the court that Busby's Facebook page could be viewed by anyone. | The prosecution told the court that Busby's Facebook page could be viewed by anyone. |
| The defence said he had not been aware of that, adding that he had made a mistake and was "deeply ashamed of his actions". | The defence said he had not been aware of that, adding that he had made a mistake and was "deeply ashamed of his actions". |
| Speaking exclusively to the BBC, Busby said: "I now realise what I said wasn't funny and it was a stupid thing to do - I would like to apologise to anyone I've offended." | Speaking exclusively to the BBC, Busby said: "I now realise what I said wasn't funny and it was a stupid thing to do - I would like to apologise to anyone I've offended." |
| He said his sentence was "fair" as other people have gone to prison for sending offensive messages about April. | |
| The court put him under a curfew between 19:00 and 07:00 GMT for eight weeks. | The court put him under a curfew between 19:00 and 07:00 GMT for eight weeks. |
| His prison sentence was suspended for 18 months. | |
| 'Warned by friends' | |
| Prosecutor Kerry Lovegrove told the court Busby's initial post on Facebook was a "joke" about April obtained from another website. | |
| The court heard that although other Facebook users urged Busby to stop writing inappropriate comments, he went on to make other claims about April, prompting a woman who has two young daughters to contact West Mercia Police. | |
| After his arrest the 18-year-old admitted he was responsible for the comments and told officers he thought they could only be seen by his friends on Facebook, the court heard. | |
| Defence solicitor Belinda Arris said Busby was now likely to lose his job and no longer engages in any social networking. | |
| Chairman of the bench Gill Porter told Busby: "You were warned by your friends when they first saw your so-called joke, but you took no notice and you continued to make further even more offensive comments." | |
| Magistrates said they had taken into account Busby's early guilty plea and remorse when sentencing him. |