A judge told a sex offender that he had ‘nobody to blame but himself’ for landing himself back in prison after he failed to inform the police of his whereabouts.
Joshua Woodhouse, 25, was handed a suspended sentence last year for offences of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.
He was also subject to the conditions of the Sex Offender’s Register which required him to keep the police informed if he stayed at a different address for seven days, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
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However, after being reported missing by his housing support officer, it became clear he was staying elsewhere.
It was later found that he had been sleeping over at a friend's house - but failed to inform the police.
He pleaded guilty to failing to comply with the notification requirements and breach of a suspended sentence on the basis that he stopped over at his friend’s house whenever he missed the last tram home.
Woodhouse, of Cheetham Hill, was sentenced to four months imprisonment.
A sentencing judge told him that he knew what his obligations were but he ‘couldn’t be bothered’ to comply.
Prosecutor James Preece told the court that Woodhouse was convicted of making indecent photos in 2017 and was sentenced to a community order and was subject to notification requirements entitling him to disclose his address to the police for the next five years.
That also included him informing them if he was to stay at a different address for seven days, either consecutively or added together.
“The defendant was visited by a housing officer who concluded that she had not seen him for a week and reported him as missing,” he said.
“He returned a few days later.
“The officer in the case attended on April 6 and she received the information that he had been staying at his friend's house overnight.
“This had not been notified to the police.”
When pushed about this he told them he stayed there ‘two or three’ times, but after contacting his friend, she said it was in excess of fifty to sixty times.
His friend said she was aware he was being managed as a sex offender but didn’t know he was required to report her address to the police.
“There were no children at the address,” the prosecutor continued.
“He pleaded guilty on the basis that he stayed at his friend’s house once per fortnight, usually on a Saturday night because he missed the last tram home.”
Woodhouse was said to have previous convictions for making indecent photos of children and attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, for which he was handed a suspended sentence order in October last year.
Mitigating for Woodhouse, Betsy Hindle told the court her client was convinced the order only applied to consecutive seven day periods.
“This was a friend of his, a 24-year-old female in his friendship group,” she said.
“There were no children there or vulnerable people.
“There was no malice in it whatsoever, there was nothing sinister in that breach.
“He suggested at one point that he thought he should disclose the address, just in case.”
Sentencing, Judge Bernadette Baxter said: “You were told by the court of the order in relation to registering on the Sex Offender’s Register and were told to notify the police of your address and keep them updated.
“It’s not onerous - you know who the police officer is and you know how to notify of your address and places you are staying, so you have nobody but yourself to blame for the fact you are locked up in Forest Bank and in breach of a suspended sentence.
“I don’t accept for one minute that you didn’t know you had to do it - I think you couldn’t be bothered to do it and didn’t want to do it.”
Woodhouse, of Middleton Road, was jailed for four months, of which he had already served whilst on remand, so will be released immediately.
He was told that his suspended sentence order would continue, as would the requirements to complete the Horizon Programme and unpaid work.
He was also made the subject of a ‘trail monitoring’ requirement which ensures he must wear an electronic tag so that the police can know where he is at all times.
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