A COWLING man who posted a message on Facebook in his attempt to track down a "scumbag" police officer, has been found guilty of malicious communication.

Andrew Rogerson, 40, appealed for help in tracking down PC Gavin Dunkerley and his wife, inviting people to share the message, Skipton Magistrates' Court heard on Tuesday.

In the public post, he described PC Dunkerley as a "scumbag", accused him of having an abortion with another woman and also of making a false statement.

The post was seen by a friend of PC Dunkerley's, who sent it to the officer who cut short his shift to return to his wife, in fear of her and his children.

PC Dunkerley, a North Wales police officer, told the court he was used to abuse as part of his job, but had taken the message to be a threat to "everything he held dear".

He said: "It's not everyday that someone attacks everything I hold very dear.

"This message could have forced a wedge between me, my partner and my family. It is only that we have such a strong relationship that we are still together."

Rogerson, of Keighley Road, who denied sending a threatening message via a Facebook status post from Scotland on March 17, said he had reacted out of frustration on hearing a friend had been sent to prison.

He had believed PC Dunkerley to have been involved in the court case and alleged he had given false information.

Rogerson told the court his intention had not been to cause the officer any anxiety and all he had to show was his honesty and integrity.

"Had I intentionally meant to cause him distress or anxiety, that would have been more foolish than I have words for. It would have been like poking a bear," he said.

He further claimed he had only meant his limited Facebook 'friends' in North Wales to see the post and had been unaware it was public.

"It was no more than a vitriolic outpouring of my frustration," he said, adding he was surprised a serving police officer would take a "nonsensical" post so seriously.

Rogerson, who said he wished to apologise to the officer for the distress, told the court he taken his complaint to both North Yorkshire Police and North Wales Police and to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Magistrates said Rogerson had clearly intended PC Dunkerley to see the post and that the message would have caused distress.

They fined him £750 and ordered him to pay costs of £620 and a £75 surcharge. They also agreed to an indefinite restraining order banning Rogerson from contacting PC Dunkerley or his wife.