A man has narrowly avoided imprisonment after abusing his former partner through a series of disgusting messages criticizing her personal appearance.Brodie Alexander, aged 26, appeared in Aberdeen Sheriff Court, admitting to engaging in controlling behavior over a period of four years. The court heard that Alexander repeatedly checked his former girlfriend's phone, driven by paranoid fears that she was unfaithful. He would then send her derogatory messages meant to upset her, calling her "fat" and "ugly." The messages included graphic comments about her body, with some being too upsetting to share publicly. At one point, during a dispute in October of the previous year, he sexually assaulted her by pinning her down on the bed and holding her arms, though he later apologized for his actions.On November 17 last year, at an address in Turriff, the woman received multiple abusive messages criticizing her appearance, such as calling her "weird-shaped" and reiterating that she was "ugly" and "fat." He also made a comment that seeing her naked might cause him to vomit. Throughout their relationship, he made regular body-shaming comments about her, which she described as "making fun" of her. During a court hearing, Alexander pleaded guilty to a charge of abusing his former partner through a course of behavior spanning from April 1, 2019, to December 19, 2023.His defense solicitor, Ian Woodward-Nutt, acknowledged that Alexander recognized the inappropriateness of his behavior and exhibited honesty about his struggles, including an ongoing mental health assessment for schizophrenia. The solicitor described him as a "hard-working young man" suffering mental health issues but made it clear that this was not an excuse for his actions. The court, taking into account the pattern of abusive behavior, sentenced Alexander to a community payback order with supervision for two years. He was also ordered to attend a domestic abuse program and was given a non-harassment order prohibiting him from approaching his former partner for two years.