Peterborough sex offender deleted social media conversations on phone to hide evidence of ‘intimate messages’

Paul Ellington, (44), was visited by officers from the Public Protection Unit (PPU) on 19 August as part of a routine check on registered sex offenders.

During the visit to Ellington’s home officers discovered he had been deleting WhatsApp messages on his mobile phone - a direct breach of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).

In interview Ellington fully admitted he had deleted several chats with various people, including one with a woman he had been “sexting.”

Ellington, of Manton, Bretton, Peterborough, pleaded guilty to breaching his SHPO.

Yesterday (9 December) at Peterborough Crown Court he was sentenced to ten months in prison, suspended for two years, ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and handed a £340 fine.

DC Jim Howard said: “All registered sex offenders in our county are allocated a member of our PPU team to monitor them. Part of this includes carrying out unannounced visits at their home, accessing their electronic devices and speaking to them about their daily activity.

“These requirements are in place to protect the public and that is why we visit them so regularly to make sure reoffending does not occur.”

Anyone who is concerned someone may have been convicted of a sex offence, and could be posing a risk to someone, can apply for disclosure information through Clare’s Law and Sarah’s Law.