Barbadian man aplogises for posting naked picture of ex on social media

A 38-year-old Barbadian man who pleaded guilty to using a tablet to send an indecent photograph, intending to cause distress or anxiety to his girlfriend last week, has been released on bail and will return  to court on May 7.

Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes had earlier remanded Brian Antonio Hinds into custody and when he appeared in court on Tuesday, the sombre looking Hinds said that the long weekend he spent on remand made him “reflect on what I was doing that was wrong”.

In his apology, Hinds asked  if it would be possible to express his regret about his actions to his former girlfriend, which Chief Magistrate Weekes said the court would work to facilitate.

“You all have to respect each other. You have to understand that if someone makes a decision that you do not like, you have a choice which is to move on. You cannot disrespect them and put all of their business out there. You cannot do that!” the chief magistrate said.

The court heard last Friday that when his girlfriend ghosted him after borrowing money and his attempts to get the funds returned failed, Hinds posted an indecent photo of her on his WhatsApp so as “to get her to come back” on December 27.

The prosecution said that Hinds and the woman had been in an intimate relationship when she borrowed money from him assuring that she would repay him in a timely manner. She failed to do so.

After threatening to post naked pictures of her, Hinds posted a photo of male and female genitalia on his WhatsApp with her name displayed. The complainant went to the police who told Hinds to “cease and desist”, and he removed the picture.

Later, on December 27, the woman was scrolling through her cell phone and saw that the accused had the same picture displayed on his WhatsApp account, this time with her face visible and her name attached. She again went to the police who arrested and charged Hinds.

On Tuesday, Chief Magstrate Weekes ordered Hinds to take part in the Partnership for Peace programme which is facilitated by the Probation Department.

“That programme will teach you a lot of respect for women and some anger management…. People like you need to be sensitised as to the feelings of others, because you were concerned about losing your job and I do not think you were concerned about a potential employer of that young lady who sees (the photo) and the conclusion they would come to.”

“They may not want to hire her. That is my problem with what is going on with social media and people in relationships. Y’all have to stop putting your business out to the world! What you did was awful. You cannot do that to anybody you claim to love,” Chief Magistrate Weekes added.

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