Paul Hind (arriving at court today) called Olivia Burt a ‘sex worker’ in vile posts
A grieving father has criticised Facebook for failing to crack down on trolls after a ‘sick sadist’ admitted posting offensive material about his dead daughter on the website.
Paul Hind, 38, called Olivia Burt a ‘sex worker’ and ‘prostitute’ in vile posts on the social media site.
The Durham University student, 20, died from head injuries after an incident outside the city’s Missoula nightclub in February.
Hind also doctored an image of the dead woman and posted pictures of children who were ‘clearly terminally ill’ on her Facebook page on April 20.
As well as Ms Burt, Hind also targeted a tribute page for Hannah Witheridge, a 23-year-old who was killed on the Thai island of Koh Tao in 2014.
The other counts related to the deaths of Joe Tilley, 24, who was found dead at the bottom of a waterfall in Colombia in May, and 19-year-old Duncan Sim, whose remains were found at West Sands in St Andrews earlier this year.
Nigel Burt, from Hampshire, said his actions were a ‘desecration’ of his daughter’s memory after a hearing at South East Northumberland Magistrates’ Court.
He describing how the postings had made him and Ms Burt’s mother, Paula Burt, feel ‘physically sick’.
‘The person who carried out this trolling can only be described as a sick sadist who knows that they are adding to our anguish and gets enjoyment out of this,’ he added.
Olivia Burt (pictured left) died from head injuries after an incident outside the city’s Missoula nightclub in February (shown right, her parents Nigel and Paula Burt at court today)
Hind also doctored an image of the dead woman and posted pictures of children who were ‘clearly terminally ill’ on the Facebook page of Ms Burt (pictured yachting) on April 20
As well as Ms Burt, Hind also targeted a tribute page for Hannah Witheridge (left), a 23-year-old who was killed on the Thai island of Koh Tao in 2014, and Duncan Sim, 19 (right)
‘Even though the Facebook posts have now gone, we keep expecting them to reappear on some other social media platform.
‘This is causing us continuing anxiety and distress.’
Mr Burt added: ‘We would also like to say that our dealings with Facebook have compounded our misery.’
He said the social media giants only tackle individual posts and not ‘overall trolling’, describing this method as ‘hopeless’.
District Judge Kate Meek sent the case to Newcastle Crown Court for sentence on September 27, and praised the Burt family for sitting in on the proceedings.
Hind, of Westacres in Wark, admitted four offences of conveying false information
Judge Meek also passed on her ‘deepest condolences’ for the loss of their daughter and said that the defendant had only added to the ‘already unimaginable’ pain that they were suffering.
Speaking outside court after the hearing, Hind said he was ‘deeply sorry’ for his actions and that he had done them ‘for attention’.
Describing how he was suffering from mental health issues and was ‘highly intoxicated’ at the time of the offences, he said: ‘All I can say to the families for the actions I have committed is sorry, that is all I can say – sorry.
‘I don’t expect them to accept any apology from me whatsoever for what I have done.’
When asked whether his actions could be seen as worthy of a jail sentence, he said: ‘From my point of view, personally, and for what I did, I would say yes.
‘I do deserve a punishment, and I don’t just deserve a punishment of being banned from social media, trying to apologise to the parents and forgetting about the whole thing.
‘I have to be punished accordingly for causing people the anxiety and the stress I have caused them, there’s no question about that.’
Hind, of Westacres in Wark, admitted four offences of conveying false information which was indecent or grossly offensive, relating to four dead people.
Speaking outside court after the hearing, Hind said he was ‘deeply sorry’ for his actions and that he had done them ‘for attention’