Southampton sex offender jailed for breaching Sex Offenders’ Register requirements

A registered sex offender from Southampton has been sentenced for failing to comply with his Sex Offenders’ Register (SOR) notification requirements.

Michael Ide, 79, of Burgoyne Road, was ordered to sign the SOR in 1998 following his conviction for gross indecency with a child.

As part of his SOR requirements, Ide was prohibited to travel outside of the UK unless he notified police at least seven days before his departure. Earlier this year, officers received information which suggested that Ide had travelled to the Philippines in April and had remained there for a month, without notifying them.
Police attended his address arrested him on suspicion of breaching his SOR.

A search of his house was carried out under Section 32 of the Police & Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and his passport was seized, which showed an arrival date in the Philippines of April 25th and a departure date of May 23rd. It was found that not only had Ide not registered this travel, he had also not registered his new passport – another requirement of his SOR.

Additionally, analysis of Ide’s mobile phone revealed that he had also been using Facebook Messenger under an alias. The name he was using had not been registered with police, which constituted a further breach of his SOR.

Ide pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 16 months in prison when he appeared at Southampton Crown Court on Wednesday (20 September).

PC Rebecca Wilshere, from the Western Offender Management team, said: “Ide is rightly back in prison for his blatant disregard of the conditions imposed on him.

“We take the management of sex offenders incredibly seriously, and invest significant resources into doing everything we can to keep the public safe.

“Officers closely monitor sex offenders and their movements allowing us to identify offences such as this.

“We can also examine their digital devices to ensure they are sticking to the legal requirements imposed on them. These orders are put in place to protect the public, and ensure that individuals do not re-offend.

“Where sex offenders fail to comply, as can be seen in this case, they can and will be returned to jail.”

A registered sex offender from Southampton has been sentenced for failing to comply with his Sex Offenders’ Register (SOR) notification requirements.