DARREN KNOWLES FROM OXENHOLME CAUGHT FLOUTING COURT ORDERS AND ATTEMPTING TO MEET CHILDREN IN POLICE STING

In February 2021, Darren Knowles, a sex offender residing in Oxenholme, was found to have violated a court-imposed restriction by accessing a dating website using an electronic device. Despite being under a strict court order that prohibited him from using any device capable of online access without prior notification to the police offender management team, Knowles was caught in the act. The incident occurred during a visit from offender managers to his residence on September 16 of the previous year, when he admitted to having gone online on an iPad without informing authorities.

Prosecutor Alexandra Sutton explained to Carlisle Crown Court that Knowles, aged 49 at the time, confessed to using the device to access a dating site and revealed that he had been experiencing difficulties accessing the internet via his mobile phone. Sutton noted, “He said he couldn’t remember exactly how long he had been doing this,” and added that Knowles expressed remorse, stating he understood he had breached his court order and agreed to attend Kendal Police Station voluntarily. Knowles subsequently admitted to the breach.

Judge Eric Lamb highlighted that Knowles had not completed an offending behaviour programme while in custody, and that limited availability of such courses after his release meant certain aspects of his offending had not been fully addressed. The judge emphasized the importance of such interventions for public safety, stating, “That would have advantages to the public to ensure you don’t offend again in the way that you did.”

As a consequence, Recorder Lamb imposed a two-year community order on Knowles, which included requirements for rehabilitation, attendance at an offending behaviour course, and a two-month night-time curfew. The judge remarked on the potential harm involved in the breach, noting, “The harm that was involved is essentially the risk of what might have taken place had you not been detected and stopped from using this device.”

Furthermore, the judge underscored the importance of authorities monitoring Knowles’s internet usage to protect children from potential predators, stating, “It is important for the authorities to know how he was using the internet ‘to ensure children are protected from predators like you’.”

Prior to this incident, in April 2019, Knowles, then aged 47, was involved in a separate case where he was caught in a police sting attempting to meet what he believed was a 12-year-old girl in a park in Lancashire. During that operation, Knowles engaged in sexualised online chat with what he thought was a young girl, referring to her as his “sexy new friend” and instructing her not to tell anyone. In reality, he was communicating with an undercover police officer. When he attempted to arrange a face-to-face meeting, officers intervened and arrested him.

Investigations revealed that Knowles possessed illegal images on his phone and had engaged in sexualised online conversations with two other individuals he believed to be girls aged 13 and 15. Despite his previous good character, including a building business, a wife, and a family, Knowles pleaded guilty to five charges: three counts of attempted sexual communication with a child, one of attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming, and possession of four extreme pornographic images.

During sentencing, Judge James Adkin described the case as extremely serious, stating, “In my judgement this case is so serious that only an immediate custodial sentence can be imposed.” Knowles was ordered to register as a sex offender and to comply with a sexual harm prevention order for ten years, reflecting the gravity of his offending and the need for ongoing supervision.