A convicted sex offender has been jailed after he repeatedly breached a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

David Dingwall Coughtrie, 54, of Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, was sentenced to two years in prison at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court.

He pleaded guilty to three counts of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and failing to comply with notification requirements.

On 12 December 2022, Coughtrie was visited by officers from Staffordshire Police's Sexual Offender Management Unit (SOMU), who checked his devices as per his SHPO.

Coughtrie has been subject to an indefinite SHPO since 2016 (Staffordshire Police).

A search of his mobile phone identified deleted WhatsApp messages and an image of a child.

He did not declare having access to any other devices. However, a search of his home was conducted following his arrest, and officers seized a games console and a tablet.

Detective Sergeant Laura Ames, of the force's SOMU, said: "We take the management of sex offenders extremely seriously and will pursue and prosecute those who choose not to comply.

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"Coughtrie rightly has very strict requirements that he is expected to abide by, and he has shown a complete disregard and lack of respect for them on a number of occasions. This sentencing should serve as a deterrent for others."

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