A woman who falsely claimed she was raped "for attention-seeking purposes" has been given a suspended sentence.

Gail Chambers, who uses a wheelchair and who has a history of wasting police time by making false allegations, concocted a "very lurid and graphic account" that she was raped in her Lurgan home in October 2015.

Newry Crown Court, sitting in Belfast, heard that the man she accused was arrested, had intimiate samples taken and was then subjected to a police interview. The court also heard this is the second time Chambers has perverting the course of justice by making a false rape claim.

After providing an alibi which proved he was shopping at an Asda store in Belfast at the same time Chambers claimed he was raping her, he was released. However, the incident has had a lasting affect on him, he had considered suicide and is having trouble living with the shame and embarrassment of being suspected of rape.

Handing 51-year old Chambers, from Russell Drive in Lurgan, a three year prison sentence, which was suspended for three years, Judge Melody McReynolds said that while cases such as this had an impact on already stretched resources and real victims of sexual crimes, she was taking into consideration Chambers mental and physical difficulties.

Before passing sentence, the Judge was told by a Crown prosecutor that Chambers made a false rape claim to police on October 24, 2015, and that after the allegation was made the "police machine swung into action."

Chambers, who the court heard was born with cerebral palsy and who played wheelchair rugby, was taken by police to the Rowan Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Antrim, where she was examined by a doctor.

It was here that she gave what the prosecutor described as a "lurid and graphic account", where she claimed a man she knew called to her house, tipped her out of her wheelchair then helped her back into the chair before throwing her on her bed and raping her.

She also claimed threats of violence were used, that she was left bleeding, and that afterwards her attacker had a bath then left.

Police arrested the man named by Chambers the following day, and he underwent a medical examination where a number of samples were taken. He was also interviewed that day, and was later released on police bail.

As a result of the account of his movements that he gave to police, CCTV from an Asda branch in Belfast was checked. His presence in the store was confirmed - and the focus of the investigation then turned to Chambers herself.

She subsequently pleaded guilty to a single charge of perverting the course of justice by making a false report that she had been raped.

The prosecutor revealed the man accused by Chambers was left "totally shocked" by the allegation and arrest, and felt "embarrassed and angry being accused of an awful crime."

In a victim impact statement, the man said when he arrested "I felt my word had collapsed around me." He said the incident has affected his social life as he no longer trusts people. He also said "the only time I feel safe is on my own company. I feel suicidal and have considered taking tablets."

The prosecutor told Judge McReynold "luckily, he was able to prove he wasn't anywhere near the location this crime was said to have been committed."

He also said Chambers criminal record involved similar offences, including a prior false rape claim made in July 2012, for which she received a suspended sentence in October 2013. Other offences she committed, the prosecutor said, mainly involved wasting police time - such as claiming she had been stabbed, or was being threatened via texts, when she was the one sending herself the messages from a second phone.

Defence barrister Adrian Higgins started his submission by telling Judge McReynolds that Chambers had acknowledged what she did was "disgusting".

Pointing out it took police almost two years to interview Chambers after the initial allegation was made, Mr Higgins spoke of his client's low IQ, "significant" mental impairment and her obvious physical disability.