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A TWITTER creep was handed an 18-week prison term yesterday after threatening to rape Labour MP Stella Creasy.
Peter Nunn, 33, waged a “campaign of hatred” against Ms Creasy from his Bristol bedroom after she backed a campaign to get Jane Austen’s face on bank notes.
The father of a three-year-old daughter claimed in his trial earlier this month that he did not realise rape threats would not cause offence.
He also said he was trying to “satirise” online abuse in his defence.
But Judge Elizabeth Roscoe jailed him yesterday after finding him guilty of sending indecent, obscene or menacing messages.
“It has to be an immediate sentence. There is no reason to suspend it,” she said.
“I’m not convinced that that would give the message that this is entirely unacceptable.”
Ms Creasy did not attend court to see him sentenced but called the judgement as a “step forward in recognising the distress and fear online harassment can cause.”
She added: “We need to send a clear message that it isn’t for anyone to put up with being harassed via any medium — this is an old crime taking a new form online and should be treated as such.”
Mr Nunn began bombarding Ms Creasy with abuse on July 29 last year after the Bank of England announced it would create a Jane Austen £10 note.
He also targeted fellow feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, who led the successful campaign for a female presence on bank notes.
He retweeted one Twitter message that said: “You better watch your back, I’m going to rape your arse at 8pm and put the video all over.’’
Trying to justify his actions later, Mr Nunn said: “If you can’t threaten to rape a celebrity, what is the point in having them?’’
The part-time delivery driver, who described himself as a feminist during the trial, also posted six abuse video messages on YouTube threatening the campaigners.
In victim impact statements given during the trial, Ms Creasy revealed that she had been forced to install a panic button in her home, while Ms Criado-Perez described her “fear and horror” at Mr Nunn’s actions.
