Pervert jailed after spending night in house with kids (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Pervert jailed after spending night in house with kids

8:44am Monday 22nd September 2008 in Swindon By Gazette Reporter

A paedophile has been jailed after spending the night at the home of his new girlfriend and her children.

Colin May had been made subject of a sexual offences prevention order, which restricted his contact with anyone under 16 years old.

But the 55-year-old spent the night at his new girlfriend's Highworth home and her three children, all of whom were under 16, were also there.

May has been convicted of carrying out sex assaults on children on two previous occasions.

In 2003 he was convicted of indecently assaulting a five-year-old boy when he was living in Westbury.

Before that he was sentenced to a one-year jail term for further indecent assaults and acts of gross indecency on a 14-year-old girl.

As a result of his convictions he was made subject of the sexual offence prevention order by magistrates following his release from custody.

Rachel Marshall, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court that the order prohibited him from having contact with young children unless specific conditions were complied with'.

She said on Monday, June 9 police went to the home of his new girlfriend and found her three children, all of whom are under the age of consent, were there.

Soon after May and the youngsters' mother returned together and accepted that he had been at the house without the permission of the social services.

When he was questioned he admitted that he had spent the night at the house and been there at the same time as the children.

He also accepted that the social services were not aware of him being there and had not given permission.

May, of Swindon Street, Highworth, pleaded guilty to breaching the order. The offence carries a maximum sentence of five years.

Anna Midgley, defending, said her client accepted what he had done and was realistic about his fate.

There was no evidence or allegation of any grooming of the children by her client, she said, and the only wrong doing was not informing the authorities of the relationship.

She said that a psychological report put him at medium risk of harm to children but accepted that rose if he was living with them.

Jailing him for 18 months Judge John McNaught said: "The last sentence of the doctor's report on your behalf is you would pose a high risk if you were resident in a house with children under 16.

"No doubt that is why in 2006 the court made a sexual offences prevention order and what do you do? You breach it and put these children at high risk.

"Maybe you didn't read the exact terms of the order but the general terms of it don't need a great deal of knowledge: it is to keep away from young children."