AN Ellesmere Port sex offender who failed to tell police of his change in address has been sentenced.

David John Reynolds, 71, of Straker Avenue, had previously pleaded guilty at the first opportunity at the magistrates court to failing to comply with the notification requirements of being on the sex offenders register.

Reynolds had been a registered sex offender since a Chester Crown Court order in 2001, with one of the requirements being he needed to keep police informed of where he was living.

At the time, police had gone to the Ellesmere Port address where Reynolds was staying on February 13, and believed he had been at that address "for some time".

Enquiries were made at Reynolds's previous address in Birkenhead, where they confirmed he had not been staying there since March 2020.

Reynolds's partner initially claimed he had been living in Ellesmere Port since January 2021, but then a further statement said he had been there since March 2020, apart from a number of occasions where he had gone back to his old address following a fall-out.

In police interview, Reynolds fully admitted the offence, saying he had been "foolish and stupid".

Appearing at Chester Crown Court on Monday, April 19, before Honorary Recorder of Chester Judge Steven Everett, Reynolds was sentenced to a 12-month community order, to include 30 days of a rehabilitation activity requirement.

He must also pay a victim surcharge.