Hampshire sex offender sees unexpected police check while he is on his boat, MAPPA report on dangerous criminals reveals

AN UNSUSPECTING sex offender was stunned when police arrived unannounced at a boat in the Solent to carry out checks.
Hampshire police's marine unitHampshire police's marine unit
Hampshire police's marine unit

The person, who has not been identified by police, was under scrutiny as they are on the sex offenders’ register.

Details of the sting using the Hampshire police marine unit were revealed in an annual report on dangerous criminals being monitored in the community.

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It’s not clear if any crimes were uncovered but police described the check as ‘successful’.

Signed off by assistant chief constable Scott Chilton, the report said: ‘Creative approaches to managing sex offenders in the community include officers utilising the police marine unit to ensure that timely visits are carried out.

‘An RSO’s boat could only be reached by navigating the ocean waves and so the services of the Marine unit were called upon help as the offender managers didn’t fancy the swim.

‘This innovative approach resulted in a successful unannounced visit on a very surprised RSO.’

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Criminals put on the register are subject to regular checks from police and have to update officers on where they live.

The report reveals there are 2,622 sex offenders, violent or other dangerous criminals in the county in a snapshot of figures on March 31 last year.

Of those, there were 14 rated as posing the most risk, with one needing what is described as 'commitment of resources at a senior level'

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) report for 2017-18

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In his introduction to the report, Mr Chilton, chair of the strategic management board, said: ‘The challenges that all statutory partners have in effectively dealing with MAPPA is growing, as we see a greater number of convictions for serious offending.

‘In addition to this, organisations continue to prioritise resources within tight public expenditure limits.

‘However I am confident that our overall strategy and delivery of MAPPA ensures the public are protected from those that cause most harm.’