A convicted sex offender changed his name by deed poll and moved in with a mother of two young children before being caught with more sordid sex abuse images on computers.

Michael Joslin was subject to a sexual harm prevent order (SHP0) having been convicted in 2013 and 2015 of similar offences.

He was found to have committed 12 breaches of the order by failing to inform the police of changes in circumstances, such as altering his name to Mike Glover and using a driving licence and bank cards in that name.

Maidstone Crown Court was told the 42-year-old, in the summer of last year, moved in with a woman in Gillingham who had children, aged nine and five.

Prosecutor Trevor Wright said while the mother was having operations in hospital Joslin looked after the children “and even bathed them”.

She was told in September he was known as Joslin, and he was on the sex offenders’ register.

“She asked him about it and he replied it was something to do with his debts because his ex-wife was being nasty,” said Mr Wright.

“She told him if he was on the register, she couldn’t have him around her children. She was aware he had a criminal past. She was also aware he was under the probation service.”

Police seized two laptops and a mobile phone from Joslin and found 351 indecent images of children at the highest level of seriousness, 538 in the next category and 187 in the lowest category.

He was jailed at St Albans Crown Court in 2013 for four months for similar offences and at Maidstone Crown Court the same year for a year. Then in 2015 he was jailed for 16 months.

Joslin’s lawyer claimed he did not intend any “deviancy” in changing his name, but said it was to remove any association with his father.

His father died when Joslin, who had mental health issues, was in custody.

He admitted possessing indecent images of children, possessing extreme images showing adults having sex with animals and breaching the SHPO.

Passing a sentence of three years imprisonment, Deputy Judge Warwick McKinnon said Joslin was perfectly aware of his obligations under the SHPO.

By living with a woman who had young children, he said, the matter became very serious.

“They (the images) are utterly appalling in terms of categorisation. Some of the children depicted were very young indeed" - Deputy Judge Warwick McKinnon

“It doesn’t end there, because when the police came to arrest you and brought you to book, your computers were examined and indecent images were found on them,” said the judge.

“They are utterly appalling in terms of categorisation. Some of the children depicted were very young indeed. There were in addition extreme images involving animals.

“This is the type of offending you have routinely engaged in and been determined to carry on in this way, so this is a bad case of its type.”

Joslin’s name will remain on the sex offenders’ register and he is barred from working with children and vulnerable adults.