'Paedophile hunter' banned from social media

43-year-old pleads not guilty to harassment

A self-styled paedophile hunter accused of ruining innocent people's lives has been banned from using social media as he awaits trial.

Forty-three-year-old Andrew Fenton of Cronk Grianagh in Braddan appeared before magistrates at Douglas courthouse.

He's previously pleaded not guilty to one count of conduct amounting to harassment, but hasn't yet entered a plea to one more count.

Prosecution advocate Barry Swain said since last year Mr Fenton had been using Facebook and Whatsapp to accuse a number of men of being paedophiles.

The court heard police had made at least four arrests based on the information supplied by him, but hadn't found any evidence to back up his claims and those accused had spent months on police bail for no reason.

Mr Swain said Mr Fenton had gone on to post further details about them on Facebook, even after being charged with harassment.

In interview, he'd refused to answer questions put to him by police but claimed he hadn't been behind the posts.

Magistrates bailed him in the sum of £500 on condition he doesn't contact his alleged victims and doesn't use social media or instruct others to post on his behalf.

He'll next appear in court on 13 October.