A registered Carlisle sex offender is back behind bars for breaching a court order — by showing a new girlfriend old family photographs on a computer.
Paul Ellis, now aged 41, was originally sentenced at the city’s crown court in April 2016, having been caught in a police sting.
Ellis had sent vile online images of himself to what he thought was a 13-year-old girl — later learning he had been in contact with an undercover officer. He had asked the girl to keep their chat our little secret.
When brought to court he admitted attempting to cause a child to look at an image of sexual activity.
Ellis, of Myddleton Street, Carlisle, was handed a three-year community order as punishment. He was also made subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order containing conditions to restrict his online activities in a bid to prevent him reoffending.
In 2022, Ellis was brought back to court and given a 28-month jail term for multiple breaches of that order. He was released from custody in May last year.
But while still on licence, in January this year, he flouted the order again.
A judge heard that a forensic monitoring service had detected suspicious online activity by Ellis. This was flagged up to Ellis’s police offender manager, who paid him a visit on January 24 this year.
Ellis was found to have used a cloud-based online data storage facility — in clear breach of one strict order prohibition.
Prosecutor Gerard Rogerson said of Ellis’ police interview comment: “He said he was using it to show his new girlfriend, who was visiting him at the time, some old photographs of his family.”
Ellis pleaded guilty to breaching the order. Defence barrister Jane Foley said: “He is apologetic. He is sorry he is taking up the court’s time today.
Ellis was given an immediate six-month prison sentence today by Judge Nicholas Barker. The order remains in force.
