ALAN THOMPSON AND HIS SHOCKING BREACH IN OXFORDSHIRE
In a recent court case that has drawn considerable attention, Alan Thompson, a 56-year-old man from Long Wittenham, was found guilty of violating a court-mandated order designed to protect children from potential harm.Thompson, who previously served a prison sentence related to sexual offences, was under a sexual offences prevention order issued approximately 15 years ago after he was convicted of engaging in inappropriate sexual activity with a minor.
This order explicitly prohibits him from having any unsupervised contact with children unless he has received explicit permission from the child's parents or if such contact occurs inadvertently.
Despite these legal restrictions, evidence presented in Oxford Crown Court demonstrated that Thompson nevertheless breached the order.
The incident in question occurred in November 2020 at a hotel where Thompson was staying.
CCTV footage from the hotel revealed Thompson driving his mobility scooter along the corridor toward his ground-floor room.
Following him were a teenage boy and girl, both minors.
The footage showed the two young people entering the toilet while Thompson proceeded to his bedroom alone.
It was revealed during the trial that Thompson was permitted to be with the teenage boy because the boy's guardian was aware of Thompson’s criminal history and previous convictions.
However, the same did not apply to the girl.
The girl’s mother explicitly stated that she had no knowledge of Thompson being a registered sex offender, contradicting Thompson’s claims of transparency.
During cross-examination, the mother was portrayed with a possible inconsistency.
It was suggested she was aware of Thompson’s past and had responded to his admission of previous offences by saying, “Okay, thanks for telling me, we’ll leave it in the past where it belongs.” Despite this, she insisted she had no actual knowledge of Thompson’s background or his status as a sex offender.
The jury, after considering the evidence, convicted Thompson on Tuesday, February 7, of breaching his sexual offences prevention order.
His sentencing has been scheduled for next month, with Judge Ian Pringle KC ordering a pre-sentence report to be prepared beforehand.
The offence carries a maximum penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment, although the actual punishment will depend on the specifics of Thompson’s blameworthiness and the damage caused.
This case underscores ongoing concerns about the monitoring and management of individuals with prior sexual convictions, especially when those individuals attempt to re-enter environments where they could potentially pose a risk to minors.
