WREXHAM MAN JAILED FOR BREACH OF SEXUAL HARM COURT ORDER
A sex offender and "consummate liar" who was found to have been using chat and social media apps 'to make friends' unbeknown to the police has been locked up.Richard Knight, of Maesgwyn Road in Wrexham, appeared at Mold Crown Court for sentence on Tuesday morning.
The 68-year-old had previously admitted three offences of breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) and one of failing to comply with notification requirements.
Brett Williamson, prosecuting, told the court Knight is a registered sex offender, having been made the subject of a suspended sentence in August last year for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, as well as attempting to cause a child to engage in a sexual act.
The conviction resulted in him also receiving a sexual harm prevention order; conditions of which included the retention of internet history on his devices for inspection by police.
He was also required to inform police of his use of social media applications, as well as any aliases he may use, within three days.
Mr Williamson said Knight's police monitoring officer paid him an unannounced visit on January 9 this year.
When his mobile phone was inspected, it was discovered that he had been using Instagram with an alias, and had used internet browsers with accounts set up to automatically delete the browsing history after three months.
Within the three month period still visible on the phone, it was found he had searched for, and installed, a messenger app - but he claimed not to have used that.
Various other apps were found however, as were records of his contact with "lots of females," at least one of whom he'd engaged in chat with.
Knight bowed his head and rubbed his forehead as he listened to the prosecution submissions on the sentencing guidelines, as well as the fact his behaviour had reflected a "deliberate breach" of his court orders.
Oliver King, defending, told the court: "He understands the court takes breaches of protective orders very seriously and he knows custody will be at the forefront of Your Honour's mind.
"Of all the platforms he visited - well-known social media platforms - there's no suggestion he was delving into the dark web or visiting sites with illegal content, or associated with online abuse.
It's also right to say that the search history, which deleted after three months, was an automatic setting on his device - not a deliberate attempt to frustrate the police seeing his search history.
If that was the case, he could have manually deleted it.
The chats the Crown presented were with adults - there's no suggestion it was with children.
He's a retired man and he was using these platforms to make friends.
Mr King asked the court to consider drawing back from immediate custody, and from activating Knight's breached suspended sentence - explaining such a sentence would punish him, but little would be done to address his rehabilitative needs.
However, Judge Rhys Rowlands told Mr King that he was required to activate the suspended sentence unless he could be satisfied it would be unjust to do so.
"Why would it be unjust?" he asked Mr King.
"I've reminded myself of the facts of that [original offence] - he didn't know he was dealing with a decoy.
"It's pretty appalling stuff.
This is a man who, no doubt in his own mind, thought he had a get-away last year.
It's a serious matter." The Judge activated nine months of Knight's suspended sentence and imposed a 12 month term consecutive for the new offences, making the total sentence one of 21 months immediate custody.
