A Dunfermline man ignored a court order yet again by contacting his former partner by making penny bank transfers.

Mark Welsh, 45, of Trondheim Parkway, was lucky to avoid a jail sentence at Dunfermline Sheriff Court having breached a non-harassment order for the third time.

The court was told Welsh breached the order by repeatedly making transfers for 1p into his partner’s bank account and attaching comments.

These included: “I love you,” “Meet me” and “Do you love me”.

This went on for four days before the woman contacted the police.

Welsh admitted he breached the order at his home and elsewhere between March 2 and 6 by repeatedly contacting his former partner by email and sending numerous bank transfers to her account with messages attached and requested that she contact him and meet him.

Defence solicitor Peter Robertson conceded: “He has an unenviable record in respect of matters such as this.”

Sheriff Grant McCulloch asked what alternative measures Welsh had taken for the child he looks after, ahead of his sentencing.

When told nothing had been put in place, the sheriff commented: “It’s his third offence in a year for the same thing.

“What did he think was going to happen today? That he’d been given a bag of sweeties?

“A non-harassment order is a very simple order and he’s ignored it three times.

“Here he has contacted her over a period of time in a very devious way.”

Sheriff McCulloch told Welsh it was only the fact he looked after the child that was preventing a jail term, as that would have been the most appropriate disposal.

Instead, the sheriff imposed a community payback order with three years of supervision, participation in the Caledonian Project for domestic offenders and 250 hours of unpaid work.

The sheriff said that a restriction of liberty order is also likely to be added at a review on 14th June.

Another non-harassment order for two years was made.