Death threat after couple's fallout

Message serious even if there was no intention to carry it out - sheriff

A WICK man sent his girlfriend a threatening message after they fell out, the town's sheriff court heard yesterday.
Posted on Cheryl Flemning's Facebook page by Peter Vercoelen it read- "Get the f**k out of my house before I kill you".
The threat was the latest hiccup in their relationship described as "having its ups and downs, usually when alcohol is involved".
Vercoelen, 47, admitted threatening or abusive behaviour at his home at 21 Kennedy Terrace, Wick, on Friday. Sentence was deferred for a background report.
David Barclay, prosecuting, said that an argument developed after a spell when the couple had been "happily" watching television and Vercolen asked Ms Fleming to leave, which she refused to do.
The accused sent Ms Fleming the offending message which alarmed her, given his earlier "volatile behaviour", before contacting the police about his "unwelcome house guest".
Mr Barclay said: "He told officers that the threat was not a literal one and had been sent out of frustration rather than anything more sinister. It was a misguided action and there was nothing to suggest Vercoelen would have carried out the threat out."
Solicitor Eilidh Macdonald said that the argument had stemmed from a disagreement over whether the couple should live together as opposed to the present arrangement where they reside separately at their respective homes.
She added that Vercoelen wanted the relationship to continue and appreciated there were issues they would require to address, one of them being alcohol.
Sheriff Andrew Berry refused an application to lift a no-contact condition in the accused's bail, in the public interest, commenting: "When there is disorder like this other people have to pick up the pieces and you sent a wholly inappropriate message which would have caused very great concern. Threatening to kill someone, is a very serious matter whether or not there is a real intention behind it."
Vercoelen will return to court for sentence on June 24.