Paul Southern, 47, of no fixed abode, has been sent back to prison after exposing himself in front of commuters at Newcastle Central station, just three weeks after being released from custody.
Newcastle Crown Court heard that Southern entered the train station on the evening of Tuesday, August 18 and sat down on a bench. At about 9.30pm, he exposed himself in the full view of passengers and staff.
A railway crew member approached him quickly after noticing the act and alerted the British Transport Police (BTP).
Arrest and admission
Following his arrest, Southern revealed during an interview that his sole purpose for travelling to the station was to expose himself.
Three weeks earlier, he had been released from prison, where he had served a sentence for voyeurism committed in February this year. He had been caught lurking in the women’s toilets at the same railway station by police officers and was handed a four-month prison sentence on March 26.
Police response
Detective Constable Adil Ahmed from BTP said: “Southern clearly hasn’t changed his ways. It’s only right that he’s back behind bars.”
“On that day he acted with shocking levels of disregard for other commuters in the station, planning his offence in advance and subjecting others to a horrific ordeal for his own gain.”
Ahmed added: “We take this type of intolerable behaviour extremely seriously, and we will continue put offenders like Southern before the courts to face justice. If you’ve witnessed or been the victim of a sexual offence on the railway network, I urge you to report it to us by texting 61016 so we can take action.”
Sentencing
Southern pleaded guilty to exposure and failing to comply with his sexual offender notification requirements. He was jailed for four months at Newcastle Crown Court on October 6 and was ordered to re-sign the Sex Offenders Register for seven years.
