A registered sex offender has been jailed after he breached a sexual harm prevention order that was imposed to curb his offending.
Steven Shevlin, 34, had failed to register a new vehicle with the police – in breach of the order – and was caught driving it after having taken drugs.
He had a false number plate, drugs and weapons. When police searched his Ford Transit, they found cannabis, an extendable baton and a knuckle duster.
Shevlin, of Stoney Lane, Shoreham, and formerly of Worthing, was stopped near Arundel by officers from the Specialist Enforcement Unit (SEU) which aims to deny criminals the use of the road network.
It followed a request from the Violent Sex Offender Register Team (ViSOR) who police offenders subject to sexual harm prevention orders and work with other police teams to enforce these orders.
Detectives from Crawley CID prepared the case and Shevlin appeared for sentence before Judge Martin Huseyin at Lewes Crown Court on Thursday 16 May.
Shevlin admitted breaching the sexual harm prevention order that was imposed in 2020, requiring him to provide information to the police to protect the public from the risk of sexual harm.
He admitted driving a vehicle that he hadn’t declared, with false number plates and without insurance, while in possession of drugs.
Having failed a roadside drug test, he admitted that he had refused to allow a specimen of blood to be taken and that he had weapons with him in his vehicle.
Judge Huseyin jailed Shevlin for 50 weeks in total and banned him from driving for a further three years after he was stopped last November.
The court was told that Shevlin had a history of drug use and sexual offending and had committed acts of indecency in public and exposed himself. He had also previously been violent and had also been caught with weapons before.
Inspector Ollie Pullen said: “Through regular proactive patrols, we disrupt criminals using our road network, while also catching intoxicated or disqualified drivers to help keep people safe on our roads.
“In this case, we found Shevlin in a vehicle which he was required to register with the police but had failed to do so.
“I’m pleased that our officers caught an offender who has tried to evade police and evade his responsibilities under a sexual harm prevention order to inform the police.
“The SEU regularly works alongside other teams within the force. In this case we worked alongside colleagues within Public Protection to act on intelligence relating to Shevlin breaching his order.
“It shows that our officers could be anywhere and we are determined to catch offenders to keep the public safe.”
