A CONVICTED sex offender has admitted to breaching a sexual harm prevention order for the second time (SHPO).

Laurence Rufus Hoad Nichol, of Fremantle Close, Basingstoke, had previously been in court charged with making and possessing over 2,500 indecent images of children.

He avoided jail in 2018 and was given an 18-month community order and made to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and 15 rehabilitation activity days.

He was also given a five-year long SHPO that prevented him from using devices that can connect to the internet or devices which can store images without informing police within three days of purchase.

But last year the 50-year-old was convicted of breaching the order when police found a laptop and hard drive containing further indecent images of children.

Today, August 5, Nichol appeared before Winchester Crown Court after pleading guilty to a second breach of the SHPO.

The Court heard that on January 23, 2021, officer found an Xbox and a USB stick at Nichol’s address during a routine inspection, both had not been registered with the police.

Ellie Sheahan, prosecution, called the act a “deliberate breach” stating the defendant was “well aware of conditions of his order” given the fact there had been a previous breach last year.

But the defence say it was simply “foolish behaviour” that the defendant claims is “never going to happen again”.

Defence added that there was “nothing sinister” in owning the Xbox as it was brought jointly with another house mate to provide a distraction around Christmas time.

The court heard that Nichol finds the festive period “difficult” after contact with his son stopped and the game console was kept in a shared space.

Probation services added that Nichol was showing progress by regularly taking part in a sex offender treatment programme and had a “realistic prospect” of rehabilitation.

Passing his sentence, Judge Recorder Michael Bowes QC said it was of “significance” that there has already been a breach of the SHPO, but admitted there “appears to be evidence of real improvement”.

After giving a stern warning that this would be Nichol’s “absolute last chance” before the court would consider a prison sentence, the QC imposed an order of 50 hour unpaid work for both charges that will run concurrent.