A CARLISLE musician got into trouble after posting a message on Facebook accusing his ex of “selling his guitars” and urging people to attack her.

The message published by 57-year-old Martin Tinkler was an “indirect” breach of a restraining order imposed to protect the woman, a prosecutor told the city’s Rickergate court.

The defendant, of Coniston Way, Carlisle, admitted the offence.

Prosecutor George Shelley said the court order’s primary conditions include a prohibition of Tinkler having any contact with the woman, directly or indirectly. But on October 28 he took to the social media site and posted the offending message.

He made the accusation about “his guitars” and said that anybody who knew his former partner should “please punch her lights out.”

Mr Shelley said that the message amounted to indirect contact with the woman.

When arrested, Tinkler said: “All I want is my guitars and stuff back.”

The court heard that there the offence was the seventh breach of the restraining order and that in September, a court gave the defendant an 18-week jail term, suspended for a year.

Sean Harkin, defending, said the breach had been “reckless” rather than intentional. The lawyer said: “He should have known there was a risk she would get wind of it and the message amounted to indirect contact.”

It was accepted the victim would have been distressed by the Facebook post, conceded the lawyer. Tinkler suffered from chronic pain and used alcohol and used alcohol to self-medicate after his GP stopped his medication.

He had mixed pain killers and alcohol. But Tinkler was now engaging with the Probation Service and making progress.

Magistrates said they would not activate the suspended sentence because to do so would be unjust. They noted that Tinkler had been keeping his Probation Service appointments.

They imposed a fresh 18-week jail term, suspended for a year, with a ten week 7pm to 7am electronically monitored curfew. The restraining order remains in place until further order.

There was no further mention in court of the guitars which were allegedly being sold.