A JILTED husband wreaked revenge on his former wife by sending pornographic photographs of her to a top-shelf magazine.

John Mains had taken the pictures of his wife, Sharon, while they were married for their own enjoyment.

But he was so aggrieved after finding out that she had had an affair that he forged her signature in order for the photographs to be published in Escort magazine, a court heard yesterday.

Mains, 43, of Greenbank Road, Darlington, also gave his former partner's body measurements and described her favourite sexual fantasy, which were published along with four photographs.

Mains was separated from his wife at the time and the first she knew about his revenge was when a neighbour on Cockerton estate told her about the magazine article in December.

Darlington magistrates heard that some time later, Mrs Mains' two young sons, aged four and six, discovered the pictures after they were scattered around the newsagents shop close to her home.

Mains, who is living at his mother's guest house in the town, pleaded guilty to forgery and obtaining property by deception.

He was sentenced to a 12-month community rehabilitation order and ordered to pay £55 costs.

The magistrates also ordered the destruction of his computer hard drive, 34 computer disks and the photographs of Mrs Mains.

Last night, Mrs Mains told The Northern Echo she was furious that her ex-husband had been spared jail.

Speaking at her home in Cockerton, which she shares with her new boyfriend, the 31-year-old said she also planned to sue Escort magazine over the published photos, which appeared in the readers' wives section.

She said: "It does not matter if I had an affair, he still had no right to do these things.

"I did not think that he would get away with it. I cannot understand how he has been allowed to walk free after what he has done. He forged my signature and sent them the photos.

"He is a very sick man and everyone should know what he is like. He also printed out copies of the photos from his computer and threw them near the newsagents where I live, and my young children found them. They brought them home and said 'look, it's you mummy'.

"My eldest daughter would not go to school because she was getting teased about it.

"He also stopped strangers in the street and showed them the magazine and told them I was his wife.

"He has shown me up around the estate where I have lived all my life and then he walks free, I am absolutely disgusted."

The couple met when they became neighbours. They married and lived together in Berwick Road, Cockerton, before the marriage broke down after nine months. Mrs Mains left him in July last year.

She said she confronted him when she found out about the pictures, but he slammed the door in her face. She then went to her solicitor who informed the police.

"I will be taking the matter further with the magazine," she said. "He forged my signature but they never checked up on it. The magazine never contacted me at all.

"He also put my life in danger because the magazine article asked men if they wanted to contact me. I could have had all sorts of weirdos trying to get in touch with me. John Mains is a very sick man."

The court heard how Mains had received a cheque for £120 from Paul Raymond Publications, owners of Escort, for the photographs, but he never cashed the cheque.

Rory Todd, defending, said: "He says it was something that he did on the spur of the moment.

"Had he sat down and thought about it, he would have talked himself out of it.

"He does regret what he has done. He disputes comments about not caring about his wife's feelings and that she did not suffer enough. He is quite happy for the photographs to be erased from the computer."

A spokeswoman for Paul Raymond Publications said that it was not a common problem for the company.

She said: "Something like this happened a couple of times around ten to 12 years ago.

"We realise that we have got to be really strict with our security. It only happens with ex-boyfriends and husbands. We do go to great lengths to ascertain a photo's authenticity.

"The magazine is aware of this case and we always ask for birth certificates and marriage certificates and try to speak to the person photographed. We do take steps to ensure this type of thing does not happen."