Homeless Lincoln man jailed after ignoring sex offenders order

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Lincoln Crown Court. Photo: The Lincolnite

A homeless man who did not keep to the terms of a sex offenders order when he failed to report to the police has been jailed for nine months.

Reuben Moses, 45, admitted failing to comply with the requirements of sex offenders’ registration while he was living rough around Lincoln in April this year.

It was the fifth time Moses, had failed to comply with the requirements of a sexual offences order made on him, Lincoln Crown Court heard.

At the time of the latest breach Moses was living in a tent after becoming “disillusioned” with efforts to find him fixed accommodation, the court was told.

The court heard Moses had previously been staying on the site of the closed former Lord Tennyson pub on Rasen Lane in Lincoln but that option was no longer available to him as it was now boarded up.

Lisa Harding, mitigating, said Moses had reported to the police for two weeks following his last court appearance on April 1, but he then became disillusioned with a change of probation officer and efforts to find him fixed accommodation.

Miss Harding told the court Moses suffered from both physical and mental health problems, and had not deliberately chosen to go under the radar.

“He feels he is in a Catch 22 situation,” Miss Harding added. “He fears he will be back before the court again because there is no resettlement.”

The court heard Moses was banned from the YMCA and could not be considered for council housing because of rent arrears he refused to pay.

Moses pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to comply with the registration requirements on April 23, this year. The guilty plea put him in breach of two suspended sentences passed for burglary and failing to comply with the same order.

Passing sentence, Judge Michael Heath told Moses: “Your obligation does not require rocket science. It is simple, all you have to do is to report to the police.”

Judge Heath added: “So far as your homelessness is concerned, the blame could be said to lie at your own door, metaphorically, since you refused to pay rent arrears.”