A YOUNG woman has been given a supervision order after extorting money from a man who had recently lost his wife.

Ainsley Preston admitted the offence when she appeared at Alloa Sheriff Court on February 28 and appeared again last week for sentencing.

Lindsay Brooks, depute fiscal, told the court that Preston and the complainer met on an online dating site and proceeded to swap numbers before then messaging each other on WhatsApp.

The 20-year-old girl sent sexual videos and photographs to the complainer, who responded with "a picture of his penis".

Preston then turned things sour by demanding £100 from the man who sent £20, but could not afford anymore.

On a later date, Preston demanded more money because "she was stuck in Dundee".

The complainer then asked how much it would cost him to have sex with her, before the accused demanded another £50 or she would "phone the police".

After sending a further £25 to Preston, she demanded another £25, stating that she was "underage", at which point he did send the rest of the money to her.

On a later date, the pair were speaking again when Preston threatened to post pictures of him online.

Ms Brookes said: "She [Preston] then said to him she had a 'picture of his d**k and that she would show it to his Facebook friends'."

The complainer then stopped speaking to her and contacted the police.

When confronted by officers who asked if she demanded money, she replied: "I wouldn't go that far, a man can say no."

Kevin Lowry, representing Preston, told the court that she currently lives with her mother and is a "vulnerable young woman" with a "significant amount of debt".

He added that the pair met on a website called whatsyourprice.com, which is "essentially a sugar daddy website".

It also emerged that the complainer had recently lost his wife, and that Preston felt "she was being supportive after the death".

However, Mr Lowry continued by saying she would not have carried out the threats and was "desperate for money", while describing his client's behaviour as "utterly inexcusable".

Sheriff David Mackie put it to Mr Lowry that a criminal justice social work report suggests Preston "plays down" the crime, which he denied she does.

The sheriff told Preston, of Maree Court, Alloa, that he takes into account that she is a first offender and has many issues highlighted in the report which he wouldn't go into in open court.

She was sentenced to 12 months of supervision.