A convicted rapist - who began a secret affair with the mother of a young child has avoided a prison sentence - despite his fourth breach of a court order.

Wayne Adams, 52, had tried to strangle a 19-year-old stranger, who he attacked as she was walking home in Rainham in 1996.

But a "clerical error" meant he wasn't arrested for eight years. He was eventually given a 12-year jail term after admitting the offences.

The judge at the time said the attack was "inhumane and wicked".

Now Adams, of Boundary Road, Chatham has avoided returning to prison despite admitting two charges of breaching rules designed to allow police to monitor where he lives.

Maidstone Crown Court heard how in November 2020 he had begun a romantic relationship with a mother of a young child living on the Isle of Wight.

The court order restricted how many nights he could spend away from his Kent home without authorities being alerted.

The mother later told officers that Adams had stayed with her "for at least 15 nights".

Prosecutor John Livingston said: "She also revealed she has a very young child, living in the same house... although Adams was never left unsupervised with the child."

He said that when Adams house was searched, officers discovered a ferry ticket to the Isle and a receipt.

"He was in breach of requirements to notify police of any address where he stayed for seven consecutive days in a 12-month period, " he added.

Officers also found a credit card which Adams had but kept kept secret from police.

Adams told police he hadn't alerted them to his trips to the Isle of Wight because he had kept his romance a secret and he had "forgotten" about the credit card.

'You have escaped an immediate jail sentence by the skin of your teeth... it won't happen again...'

The court heard it was his fourth breach of the regulations, following infringements in 2013 and 2018.

Defence barrister Thaiza Khan said he is no longer in a relationship and is working full-time for an event hiring company and earning £22,000 after tax.

"The stress which came with this case ended the relationship, " she added.

The Judge, Recorder Alistair Webster QC, told him he had breached the notification requirements imposed after the "extremely serious rape of a stranger and strangulation" in 2005.

He added: "These court requirements are imposed for good reasons to protect members of the public from someone who, in the past, showed himself to be a danger.

"You took a quite deliberate decision to lie about the relationship on the Isle of Wight.

"You have escaped an immediate jail sentence by the skin of your teeth... it won't happen again."

He received a four-month jail sentence, suspended for two years, was fined £850 and ordered to pay £500 court costs

Adams wasn't arrested for the earlier rape and attack despite giving a DNA sample which matched police evidence.

Speaking after the earlier hearing, Det Insp David Withers said Adams had finally been caught by a review of DNA evidence from unresolved crimes.

He said Adams had been arrested for a public order offence in 1996 and had a forensic sample taken, but the match was not spotted at the time due to a "clerical error".

"They realised that a 1996 sample taken from the victim had been transcribed incorrectly into the national database.

"It appears to be a typing mistake," he added.

Adams remains on the Sex Offender's Register.

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