A British man who sent hoax e-mails to relatives of people missing since the Asian tsunami saying their loved ones had been confirmed dead was sentenced today to six months in jail.
Christopher Pierson (37) had earlier pleaded guilty to charges of malicious communication and causing a public nuisance after police seized computer equipment.
Pierson told the judge he was remorseful over what had happened and was visibly distressed during sentencing at London's Bow Street Magistrates Court.
He was bankrupted in 1998 and was depressed over the death of his son, the court heard. Another son had been diagnosed with unstable diabetes that required 24-hour care.
The picture of a father grieving on television prompted him to send the e-mails, as he wanted the family to have closure over the death of their loved one, Pierson had told the court.
Claiming to be from the "Foreign Office Bureau" in Thailand, he targeted people who had placed appeals for information about relatives and friends on the website of Sky News.
All the messages came from one bogus email address, ukgovfoffice aol.com.
The death toll from the tsunami, triggered by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off western Indonesia, now stands at more than 234,000, with 53 Britons confirmed dead and another 198 very likely to have died.