Locations
Dene Avenue, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE15
Description
A sex offender has been jailed after he was caught staying at a home where three children lived.
Linton Mwingi had informed the mother of the youngsters of his sordid past and that he was on the Sex Offenders' Register but he hadn't informed the authorities that he sometimes stayed at her house.
The 28-year-old, who was given a suspended sentence in 2016 for sexual assault after he loitered near toilets in Eldon Square, exposed himself, made lewd comments and tried to drag a young man into a cubicle, also hadn't told the police of two bank cards he'd taken out or that he wasn't always living at his usual Lemington address, all of which were requirements of the register. A court heard that it was not the first time Mwingi hadn't adhered to the Sex Offenders' Register, having previously been convicted in 2021.
The former talented footballer, of Dene Avenue, in Lemington, has now been locked-up for eight months after he pleaded guilty to five counts of failing to comply with the requirements of the Sex Offenders' Register. Glenda Beck, prosecuting at Newcatle Magistrates' Court, said Mwingi's risk management officer attended his Lemington home in September 2024 and spoke with a male, who confirmed that Mwingi was not living there.
Mrs Beck continued: "Financial checks were carried out and the defendant had two registered bank cards, with one having a home address in Sunderland." The court heard that officers again visited his Lemington home and were told by two males that he didn't live there.
They then attended the Sunderland address linked to the bank account and found a number of items belonging to Mwingi. The property was the home of a woman Mwingi claimed to be a friend and her three children.
Kash Khan, defending, said Mwingi had suffered a brain injury in the past. Mr Khan added: "He's suffered since with remembering things and getting his affairs in order."
Jailing him, District Judge Paul Currer said: "These are serious offences because you were not living where you ought to have been. Instead, you were present at an address where there were children without notifying the authorities and you had two bank accounts, which you also didn't register with the authorities."