Violent ex-boyfriend who harassed a young mother, 22, and posted revenge porn picture of her on WhatsApp is jailed for eight months

  • Charlotte Barnes dated Michael Eastburn after meeting him in a pub
  • The couple split after Eastburn, 31, became violent and controlling 
  • He refused to stay away from his ex and eventually posted a sexual picture of her as his WhatsApp profile photo
  • Thug pleaded guilty and has now been jailed for eight and a half months

By Hugo Gye for MailOnline

Published: 13:52 GMT, 23 May 2016 | Updated: 14:46 GMT, 23 May 2016

Relief: Charlotte Barnes has spoken of her delight after her ex-boyfriend was jailed for harassment

Relief: Charlotte Barnes has spoken of her delight after her ex-boyfriend was jailed for harassment

A young mother has spoken of her torment at being the victim of revenge porn from her ex-boyfriend who set out to humiliate her when she broke up with him.

Charlotte Barnes was constantly harassed by 'obsessed' Michael Eastburn after their relationship ended - culminating in him posting an explicit photo of her on WhatsApp.

Eventually the 22-year-old reported her former partner to the police, and he has now been sentenced to eight and a half months in prison.

'I'm just happy he is now locked up,' Miss Barnes said today. 'I can live my life without constantly looking over my shoulder to see if he's following me. I have nightmares where he's stood over my bed.

'He's obsessed with me and all this has happened because I ended the relationship.

'It was such a shock he pleaded guilty - I thought he would want to make me stand up in court and face him.'

The couple, who each have one child from a previous relationship, met last year in a pub in Hedon, East Yorkshire, where they are both from.

They entered into a whirlwind relationship but within three months he had abandoned his charming persona and turned violent and controlling.

After Eastburn refused to let her leave her home and strangled her with a scarf, Miss Barnes finally contacted the police and took out a restraining order against him.

He was convicted of assault and given a suspended sentence, but repeatedly broke the court order by contacting her and harassing her on social media.

Charlotte Barnes
Michael Eastburn

Break-up: Miss Barnes, left, was harassed by Michael Eastburn, right, after ending their relationship

At one point, he turned up at the house of a friend she was visiting and dragged her through the living room window before pinning her to the ground.

Eastburn, 31, also blackmailed his ex using intimate photographs which he had previously persuaded her to pose for before their break-up.

The thug told Miss Barnes: 'I've got some lovely pics on my phone I'm sure people would like to see' - then used a sexual image of her as his profile photo on WhatsApp.'

Couple: Miss Barnes and Eastburn dated for several months before he became violent and controlling

Couple: Miss Barnes and Eastburn dated for several months before he became violent and controlling

She said: 'The picture didn't have my face on it, but everyone would have known it was me. When I saw the picture, I was devastated - it was horrendous. I couldn't believe it.

'He used to nag and nag at me to let him take them but you never expect anyone to do that.

'He's got a lot of contacts on there. I knew so many people could see them and I was wondering what he would do next. The worst part was that I couldn't do anything about it.'

Eastburn pleaded guilty to assault, harassment, criminal damage and the disclosure of private sexual photographs at Hull magistrates' court.

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