More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
A convicted pervert who used his cooking skills to land a job with a family with three young children, has been sent to prison.
John Watson had been banned from being alone with youngsters after a conviction in 2017 for taking illicit photos.
Now the 24-year-old has admitted three new offences at Maidstone Crown Court.
These are failing to comply with sex offender notification requirements, breaching a sexual harm prevention order by gaining employment bringing him into contact with children, and breaching a suspended sentence order.
Prosecutor Bridget Todd told how the mother was “mortified and felt physically sick” when she realised Watson had been in the same swimming pool as her children.
She told how he had moved into a flat on the property with his girlfriend who had been hired as a nanny in June last year.
But after making the family a meal, the mother offered him a job as a chef/housekeeper and said she would be making a check under the Disclosure and Barring Service.
It was then Watson, of Limeburners Drive, Halling, confessed he had a conviction and the police would be speaking to her about it.
Judge Philip Statman told him: “You showed yourself to be a good cook.
“But it beggars belief that having been through the process and after having a suspended sentence hanging over you, you knew well fine just how serious it was...and that you had broken the trust of the family and caused them great upset.”
The judge also told him that he had “a chequered history” in complying with court orders.
He added: “Those are in place to protect children and to ensure the community as a whole know courts take seriously any offences relating to children. You seem to want to flout the law.”
Tom Dunn, defending, said Watson, who’d moved on to work as a pub chef, had forgotten to tell police about a new credit card and his new address.
He added the relationship with his girlfriend had been “toxic” and he had moved into the flat to give her his support.
Mr Dunn added Watson had never been alone with the children.
He was jailed for eight months and given a 10-year sex offences prevention order.
For information on how we can report on court proceedings, click here.
