A CONVICTED child sex offender from Coventry who refused to let police access his phone has been jailed for two years.
Stanley Heames, 41, of St Columbas Close, was arrested when officers raided his home in September, acting on information that he had been accessing child sexual abuse material on his phone.
A phone was hidden underneath a windowsill at his property, but Heames – who was jailed for six years in 2017 for a series of sexual assaults on a girl under 13 – repeatedly refused to hand over the passcode to unlock the phone.
West Midlands Police obtained an order from a judge, known as a Section 49 notice, which meant that he had to reveal his PIN within seven days.
He still refused, and so was charged with failing to comply with the order.
Heames admitted the offence in December and was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court earlier this month.
He was also given a sexual harm prevention order for 20 years, banning him from contacting, associating with or befriending girls under 16, and ordering him to hand over phones and PIN codes to any of his electronic devices when asked by police.
PC India Meredith from West Midlands Police’s Online Child Sexual Exploitation Team, said: “We had information that Heames was accessing indecent images of children and so it was really important that we accessed his phone, especially given his previous convictions for sexually assaulting a young girl.
“This case goes to show that to bring predators and criminals to justice is the main responsibility of policing, and the use of all legal and lawful means to do so will be explored to the full extent of the law to ensure that the public are protected.
“Heames is now behind bars, and has strict conditions on him for the next two decades which will protect the public and support police in monitoring his behaviour and actions.
“We have advanced digital forensic techniques which are always evolving. This case shows we will pursue all available means to ensure criminals face justice.”
