A gardener who sent a threatening message to his partner’s ex-boyfriend has been fined £500.

Mark James Whipp told the complainant via Facebook messenger, ‘you’re getting cut’.

The 37-year-old admitted sending a menacing message and was also ordered by magistrates to pay £125 prosecution costs.

Prosecuting advocate Peter Connick told the court that the complainant was the former partner of Whipp’s current partner.

On February 22, the man reported that he had received a Facebook message from Whipp saying: ‘What the f*** have you been saying?

‘You’re getting cut.’

The man went to Douglas police headquarters to report the offence but while he was there he received a call from Whipp.

He didn’t answer it but then more messages were received, one of which said: ‘I’m coming down yours soon. 

‘You should be in jail.’

During an interview at police headquarters, Whipp answered ‘no comment’ to all questions.

The court heard that he has no previous similar convictions.

Mr Connick said that the messages had been relatively brief, and that contact was not believed to have been persistent, so no protective order was being sought.

Defence advocate James Peterson asked for credit to be given for his client’s guilty plea and said that the two men did not know each other, beyond them both having dated the same woman.

Mr Peterson said that Whipp had been informed that the other man had been ‘bad mouthing’ him and that he had reacted to that.

‘He accepts he shouldn’t have sent the messages,’ said the advocate.

Mr Peterson said that the offence was fineable only and that his client was a gardener, but was currently off sick.

Magistrates ordered Whipp, who lives at Maple Avenue in Onchan, to pay the fine and costs at a rate of £10 per week.