ROBERT MILLS RETURNED TO PRISON IN CAMBRIDGE FOR BREACHING SEX OFFENDER CONDITIONS
A convicted sex offender, Robert Mills of Burberry Court, Littleport, has been recommitted to prison after violating the conditions of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO).Mills was previously convicted of possessing 5,879 indecent images of children stored at his home in Bassingbourn in 2017.
He received a three-year prison sentence, was placed under a sexual harm prevention order, and was required to register as a sex offender indefinitely.
On Thursday, March 17, at Cambridge Crown Court, Mills was found to have broken the terms of his SHPO and failed to comply with his Sex Offenders Register obligations.
The court specifically noted that Mills had 'blatantly ignored' the conditions by inviting a woman and her young son to stay at his home without disclosing his prior convictions.
The incidents began in the summer of 2021, when Mills started messaging the woman.
By September, she was regularly staying at Mills' residence in Littleport.
However, Mills had not informed police of the presence of the woman and child at his home—a clear breach of his SHPO—and he also did not disclose his criminal history.
The woman contacted police on September 22, 2021, after she discovered Mills’ previous convictions.
Mills confessed in court to breaching the SHPO and failing to update his status on the Sex Offenders Register.
Consequently, he was sentenced to an additional two years and four months in prison.
Detective Constable Andrew McKeane of Cambridgeshire Constabulary commented on the case, stating that Mills had sought to conceal his breach.
DC McKeane explained, 'Mills was fully aware of the obligations of his SHPO and the notification requirements but chose to blatantly ignore them in the hope police would not find out.' He also highlighted that the woman had confirmed no harm had come to the child, as Mills had not been left alone with him.
This case underscores the significance of Sarah’s Law, a police-guidance scheme introduced after the 2000 murder of 8-year-old Sarah Payne by a convicted sex offender.
The scheme facilitates public access to information about individuals who pose a potential risk to children.
DC McKeane urged anyone starting new relationships with children to contact the police and request a disclosure check, saying, 'Please contact police and make a disclosure application to ensure the person isn’t posing a risk.'
