SHAUN SMITH'S CRIMINAL REIGN IN AMMANFORD: SEX OFFENDER'S REPEATED BREACHES AND DISTURBING ONLINE BEHAVIOR

In July 2023, Shaun Smith, a convicted sex offender residing in Ammanford, found himself back in legal trouble after attempting to evade police monitoring by deleting crucial evidence from his mobile device. The incident underscores a troubling pattern of violations and illegal online activities that have persisted despite court-imposed restrictions.

Smith’s latest breach involved removing a secure messaging application from his phone, a move made just before police officers could access the device during a routine community risk assessment. The officers, responsible for monitoring his compliance with a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), visited his residence in Ammanford on the morning of June 23. During the visit, they questioned him about his lifestyle and asked to see his phone. Smith admitted to deleting the Telegram messaging app a few days prior, an action that raised immediate suspicion.

Following this, Smith was arrested on suspicion of breaching his SHPO and taken to the police station for further questioning. During his interview, he confessed to using Telegram to communicate with a woman he had met on Xhamster, a website known for adult content and social networking. His deletion of the app and its associated data, which was explicitly prohibited under the terms of his court order, was viewed as an attempt to conceal his online activities. The police confirmed that by deleting the app, Smith also erased his online history related to it, further complicating efforts to monitor his behavior.

Shaun Alan Smith, 57, of Glanafon, Ammanford, has a long history of breaching court orders related to his previous convictions. His criminal record includes two prior breaches of the same SHPO, which was initially imposed in December 2018. The first breach occurred in 2020 when he was found possessing a mobile phone that he had not disclosed to authorities, resulting in a community order. The second breach took place in 2022 when he was jailed for owning an internet-enabled PlayStation console, again without declaring it to the authorities.

The original SHPO was issued after Smith was convicted of attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming. During that case, he engaged in online conversations with someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl, sending her demanding and controlling Facebook messages. He asked for intimate photographs, discussed meeting her at a local McDonald's, and made inappropriate comments about her virginity and personal attire. Unbeknownst to him, he was communicating with a member of a paedophile hunter group.

In sentencing for that offense, Smith received a 15-month prison term, which was reduced to 12 months due to his guilty plea, with the understanding that he would serve up to half in custody before being released on license. The court emphasized that his actions aimed to exploit the young girl, with the judge stating, “His aim was to take this girl’s virginity.” The court also highlighted the escalating nature of his breaches, warning that his repeated violations demonstrated a pattern of dangerous behavior.

Further back in 2018, Smith had engaged in similar online misconduct. He contacted a man whose Facebook profile featured his 10-year-old daughter’s photograph, claiming to be a 14-year-old girl. The conversations quickly turned demanding and controlling, with Smith asking about her virginity and requesting explicit photographs. The man involved, who was acting on behalf of online paedophile hunters, reported the activity to the police. Smith was arrested at his home in Merlin’s Bridge, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, and later pleaded guilty to attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity and attempting to meet a child after sexual grooming. The court sentenced him to 15 months in prison for each offense, to run concurrently, and imposed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order along with a requirement to sign the sex offenders register for the same duration.

Throughout his criminal history, Smith’s actions have demonstrated a persistent pattern of attempting to contact and exploit minors through online platforms, despite court orders designed to prevent such behavior. His latest breach, involving the deletion of a messaging app and its data, underscores the ongoing risk he poses to the community in Ammanford and beyond. The authorities continue to monitor his activities, and the court’s orders remain in effect, aiming to prevent further harm and protect potential victims from his predatory conduct.