A REGISTERED sex offender who went “off radar” began a new life in Cumbria with a false name, failing to tell either the police or his new partner, a court heard.
Police were so concerned when 38-year-old Sean Beazant disappeared that they issued a public appeal in the hope of finding him. They finally traced him to Kendal, where he was living with his unsuspecting partner.
At Carlisle Crown Court, the defendant – formerly based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire – was sentenced for five admitted offences.
They were three breaches of his obligations as a person whose name is on the national Sex Offender Register, a breach of the terms of his sexual harm prevention order, and possession of the class B drug cannabis.
Prosecutor Lucy Todd outlined the facts.
She said Beazant was put on the Sex Offender Register in 2021 after he was convicted of downloading indecent images of children. He will remain on the register for a decade, until January 2029.
His obligations include the need for him to inform the police where he is living and to notify them of any internet-enabled device he possesses.
The barrister described how the defendant’s police offender manager made several attempts to visit him at his Doncaster home between January and April of this year.
On each occasion, he was not there.
By mid-April, it was obvious that he had moved out without telling the police; he failed to meet his annual deadline for notifying the police of his regular address.
“On April 19, 2024, the police issued a press release [about the defendant],” said Miss Todd.
In response to this, a member of the public reported seeing Beazant in Kendal. When the officers arrived at the home of his new partner, the defendant was seen jumping from the first-floor window to flee.
He was arrested a short time later, carrying a small amount of cannabis. He confirmed being in a relationship with the woman, the mother of a young boy, since Christmas of 2023.
“She knew him as Sean Williams,” said the barrister.
“She was not aware of his correct surname and he had not disclosed the name Williams to the police. He had not told the woman he was a sex offender."
Miss Todd continued: “She said she would not have allowed him into the address if she had known; she’d provided him with an old phone and observed him using it on a daily basis.”
The court heard that the defendant had previously breached his sexual harm prevention order in December 2022.
Gerard Rogerson, defending, said that all of the children involved in the indecent images case were girls and there was no evidence that Beazant had committed any further similar offences.
The catalyst for the offences before the court was a change of the defendant’s offender manager, said Mr Rogerson. “He simply didn’t get on with his [new] offender manager,” said the barrister.
At the time of the attempted police visits, said Mr Rogerson, Beazant was working 13- or 14-hour days. The offender manager, unable to speak to Beazant, had then twice visited him at his workplace.
“This led to the loss of two jobs,” said Mr Rogerson.
As a result, the defendant “disengaged” and left Doncaster without telling anybody and began a relationship with the woman in Kendal after meeting her online. He now accepted he subjected the woman to a “cruel deception.”
He felt he would never have a relationship with a woman if his first step was to disclose his previous conviction. Despite her initial shock at learning of his past, the woman wanted to continue the relationship, said Mr Rogerson.
“She sees the good in him,” continued the barrister.
While living in Kendal, Beazant, a trained welder, had set up a property maintenance company with the woman so that he could use some of his skills and he was determined to "turn his life around."
As for his attempt to flee from the police, he had panicked. Mr Rogerson added: “He no longer has a sexual interest in children and is prepared to work with probation on his release from prison.”
Judge Michael Fanning questioned whether the defendant could claim to have no interest in children given his indecent images convictions.
“You can’t switch off an interest of that nature; that’s why the risk has to be managed,” said the judge. The risk cannot be managed if he “falls off the radar,” and assumes a fictitious name, said the judge.
The judge described Beazant’s conduct towards the woman in Kendal as “cruel and deceitful.” It was “incredible” she was prepared to stand by him, he said.
He jailed the defendant for two years.
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