SEX OFFENDER CAUGHT USING FALSE NAME ON DATING SITE AVOIDS JAIL
A CONVICTED sex offender who used a false name for an online dating profile "in case his partner saw him on the site" has now been sentenced.Richard Keeton avoided jail when he returned to Kilmarnock Sheriff Court earlier this week.
The 37-year-old previously pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to comply with conditions imposed upon him as a registered sex offender during an appearance in the dock earlier this year.
At that time, the court heard that Keeton, who resides in Huddersfield, was caught out while visiting family members in North Ayrshire.
While staying locally, due to the sentence passed following a previous conviction in January 2020 at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester, he was required to 'check-in' with cops at Saltcoats police station.
On one such occasion, on August 26 last year, officers asked to interrogate Keeton's phone.
When doing so, they discovered that he had an active Badoo account, described as a dating website.
It was noted that Keeton was chatting with "several" people while using the name Peter, a username that had not been previously disclosed to police.
The account had been active since July 31 last year, constituting a breach of his sex offender requirements as he must notify police of any usernames used within three days.
He was later cautioned and charged.
His solicitor, Roselyn Gallen, explained that Keeton had not previously had issues adhering to requirements and regularly liaised with police in England and Scotland.
She highlighted that her client has physical and mental disabilities and had been "having a nice visit," not realizing his actions were wrong.
She stated: "He didn’t know that he couldn’t go on to a dating site.
He advises that he did not believe he wasn’t allowed to do this or he wouldn’t have done it." Keeton had used a different name "in case his partner saw him on the site." Following his previous appearance, Sheriff Murdoch Mactaggart deferred sentence for background reports.
When he returned to court, he was fined £640.
