'Facebook friend' cleared of harassing ex

A man accused of harassing his ex-girlfriend through the social networking site Facebook has been cleared by a British court.

AFP reports that 34-year-old Michael Hurst had been accused of harassment by former girlfriend Sophie Sladden in January.

He had sent her a 'friend request', which lets users of the site decide who can or can't see their profiles.

Sladden believed that it was an intimidation attempt from Hurst, who had already been cautioned by police for harassing her.

AFP said he had told the court that Facebook friends could be described as friends in the 'traditional sense'.

Hurst pointed out that radio DJ Chris Moyles had 1.5 million Facebook friends.

"Do you think he knows them all intimately?" he asked the court before being cleared with a warning not to make contact with his ex-girlfriend again.

- NZ HERALD STAFF