A MOTHER was horrified to learn her new partner was a convicted sex offender and had stayed at her home while her teenage daughter was there.

Jason Mark Thomas, 47, was banned from unsupervised contact with youngsters under the terms of his notification requirements and told the police he was not in a romantic relationship.

But text messages between Thomas, of Shear Brow, Blackburn, and the woman revealed they were a couple and he had stayed overnight at her home.

Preston Crown Court heard Thomas’s offences were picked up when police officers carried out routine monitoring of him.

They were made worse by the fact he had committed similar offences with another woman, who had two young daughters, and was handed a community order in September last year.

Judge Robert Altham, sentencing, said: “It is important to understand that these requirements are to prevent the risk of sexual harm to young people

“It s not for you to say you can breach the terms of the order.”

However it is not believed Thomas had harmed any of the youngsters when he became involved with their mothers.

Judge Altham revoked the community order which was handed to Thomas in September and sentenced him to 26 weeks behind bars for the offence.

He added a further 32 weeks for the more recent offence, in which Thomas admitted staying overnight on three separate occasions in June.

Judge Altham said: “You were the subject of a routine inspection by police officers and the courts and the public should be grateful to the police who carry out the important function of policing these orders.

“In the course of the inspection you dishonestly denied that you were in any kind of relationship.

"Messages were found that made it clear you were.

“You were forced to admit you were in such a relationship and troublingly this woman with whom you were in a relationship with had a teenage daughter.

“When she was spoken to she was devastated.

“She regarded herself as a vulnerable person who had been preyed upon by you. She had no idea of your background.

“She felt deceived, let down and exploited.”

Thomas pleaded guilty to three charges of failing to notify the police he would be staying at the house and was resentenced for his previous breaches.