Man jailed for online death threats

A computer expert who sent threatening e-mails to his American pen pal has been jailed for 18 months.

Winchester Crown Court was told that Paul Clark, 33, of Portsmouth, set up two hoax websites offering a £75,000 bounty to kill his Texan pen pal and her husband.

Clark was earlier found guilty of two charges of making threats to kill Brandy Arnett by e-mail and cleared of three counts of soliciting to murder.

But he could walk free because he has already served 10 months on remand.

'Flirtatious relationship'

Mr Justice Elias told Clark: "These threats were made to a woman whom you have never met but had developed a close, flirtatious relationship with over the internet.

"You were led to believe by Mrs Arnett that she was single and interested in the possibility of marriage. You were plainly deceived."

Clark put out a "hoax" contract on her life over the internet which he never intended to carry out, the judge said.

The threatening e-mails were also part of the "fantasy" character of the online relationship.

But he added: "Mrs Arnett was genuinely put in some fear that you might carry out those threats."

Mrs Arnett was genuinely put in some fear that you might carry out those threats

Mr Justice Elias

Clark was cleared at his trial of one count of soliciting to murder Mrs Arnett, of El Paso, Texas, and two counts of attempting to solicit to murder Mrs Arnett and her husband Rick between May and October last year.

Michael Ver-Hodge QC, defending, had told the court that Clark was full of remorse and had been led on by Mrs Arnett.

He added: "Marriage was certainly being considered and discussed between them. Presents were being sent and flowers were being sent by Mr Clark."

The defence lawyer maintained "naive" Clark would have needed "superhuman" control to have contained his anger when he realised that he had been deceived.

'Cyber war'

There was no actual danger to her from the "lover's tiff" when they were separated by thousands of miles, he said.

The Crown failed to prove during the trial that anyone other than Mrs Arnett and the FBI could have found the sites.

One of the web sites included a picture and an address of Mrs Arnett with a proposition to "terminate" her.

Clark said the two web sites, offering $100,000 and $25,000 (about £68,000 and £17,000), were a hoax that was part of a "cyber" war between the pair.

One e-mail from Clark said: "There are plenty of gun-crazed head cases out there - someone will do it."

Infatuation

Mrs Arnett had told the court that Clark had become infatuated with her after they met in March last year.

She sent him a wedding photograph, newspaper cuttings and a copy of her marriage certificate to try to convince him she was married and there was no future in the relationship.

She said she became terrified of leaving her home after learning of the sites.