A persistent pervert who breached a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) in Maidstone has been jailed.

Jamie Stevens, 30, of no fixed address, was arrested on October 5 after going into a private garden off Chatham Road without the owner’s permission.

He was charged with the offence and found guilty when he appeared before Medway Magistrates’ Court on November 23 before being sentenced to 18 months in prison at Maidstone Crown Court on Wednesday.

The SOPO ordered him to wear at least one layer of clothing over his underpants at all times, unless in a swimming pool, where he must wear trunks; to not urinate in a public place or a private place if visible to passers-by; to not loiter in alleyways; and to not enter beyond boundaries of private residences without the permission of the owner.

Detective Constable Darren Smitherman said: “Stevens has shown a complete disregard for the conditions of his prevention order and by entering a private garden was likely to cause considerable distress to residents.

“Stevens should reform his behaviour when he is released as any further breaches are likely to lead to another period in prison.

“I would like to thank the witnesses who assisted us throughout the investigation and trial.”

The father of one has repeatedly found himself in the dock over the past three years after flouting the bizarre court conditions imposed after he performed a sex act in front of a police cell CCTV camera for 55 minutes.

Following the 2015 offence he was jailed for four months, told he would spend seven years on the sex offenders’ register and made subject to a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).

At the time the court was told his offending dated back to 2012 when he was convicted of outraging public decency after performing a sex act while watching a woman by Archbishop’s Palace.

But in May 2016, Stevens breached the SOPO on two occasions by lurking in alleyways near his home. He was handed a two-year suspended sentence and due to the serious and persistent nature of his offending was ordered to sign up to the Thames Valley Sex Offender Treatment Programme for 24 months.

Then in February last year, he was jailed for 180 days for sexually assaulting a shopper at Poundstretcher, Aylesford.

He was given an additional 40 days for breaching a suspended sentence and sentenced to a week, to run concurrently, for trashing his police cell following his arrest.