Dangerous Sex Offender Jailed for Breaching SOPO

Karl Townsend, 49, has been returned to jail after breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).

Townsend was released from prison in March after serving a 10-year extended sentence for sexual assault on an adult woman. He was living in Emscote Road, Warwick, and was subject to a SOPO which prohibited him from "loitering in any place."

On June 10th, Townsend's monitoring tag showed him leaving his home and walking to Leamington, where he spent time in Victoria Park and the Pump Room Gardens. Within 35 minutes, Townsend was arrested in Warwick New Road, Leamington. Upon arrest, it was discovered that he had put on a dark colored hairpiece, likely to disguise himself.

Townsend appeared at Warwick Crown Court last week and was jailed for 28 months.

Detective Chief Inspector Karl Faulkner from Warwickshire Police stated, "Townsend is an extremely dangerous man, and as soon as he was released from prison in March, he was under close supervision to ensure he was unable to cause any harm. SOPOs are extremely powerful tools that allow us to control the behavior of dangerous offenders, preventing them from committing further criminal acts. As soon as we became aware Townsend had breached, he was arrested, put before the courts, and jailed."