A convicted sex offender from Elm who "chose to ignore" his court order has been jailed after going abroad and failing to attend his appointments.

William Cassidy, 31, was placed on the Sex Offenders Register in December 2018 after he was convicted of a sexual assault.

Cassidy was due to complete his initial notification appointment on December 19, but he failed to make the meeting.

On January 14, 2019, police contacted Cassidy about the missed appointment. He claimed he didn’t realise he needed to attend and stated he would go to Thorpe Wood Police Station the following day to complete it.

Once again Cassidy failed to attend and later called to say he was busy. Officers explained this was unacceptable and Cassidy then admitted he was abroad.

Despite being told by officers to return for his appointments, Cassidy failed to do so.

Cassidy, of Kirkhams Lane, Elm, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with his notification requirements and was sentenced to eight months in prison at Peterborough Crown Court on Monday March 1.

He was also handed a further three months in prison for breaching an order given to him during a case in Stevenage.

Detective Sergeant Kayleigh Smith, who investigated, said: "Cassidy was made aware of the conditions imposed upon him as part of being on the Sex Offenders Register but he chose to ignore them.

"I hope this case reassures the public of our commitment to keeping tabs on sex offenders and shows offenders how seriously we take breaches and failure to comply with conditions.”