Another Constable

Two weeks ago I posted this. And here we are with a similar situation again.

Nationwide Hunt For Missing Paedophile

A nationwide manhunt has been launched for a paedophile who walked out of an open bail hostel. William Knowles, 44, has a string of child sex convictions, believed to date back to 1996. He was out on licence from prison when he disappeared from the hostel in Bury, Greater Manchester, on Tuesday.

The Probation Service said Knowles had been jailed in 2001 for the attempted abduction of a 10-year-old girl and the kidnap of an eight-year-old girl and a boy aged seven.

He was releasedin July 2005 but recalled the same month before being re-released in December last year.

Detectives have alerted ports, Greater Manchester Police said.

It is suspected Belfast-born Knowles may try to flee to his native Ulster via Scotland.

He has been regarded as a “high-risk” offender who poses a clear danger to children and has a long history of grooming and sexually abusing children, police said.

He is also known to target vulnerable mothers in order to gain access to their children.

Superintendent Mick Lay, from the Public Protection Unit at Greater Manchester Police, said: “I am keen to stress that we are making every effort to trace Knowles.

“We have set up an incident room in Manchester and are currently working with colleagues across the country, including in Northern Ireland, to trace Knowles and return him to prison as soon as possible.”

Knowles has reportedly gone missing from a bail hostel before after being released from jail.

It is believed he was released in 2001, but soon afterwards went missing from a bail hostel in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and was later found in Liverpool.

Knowles speaks with a strong Northern Irish accent, has a scar on his right cheek and a tattoo of “Anthony” on his right arm.

Anyone with any information is asked not to approach him, but to contact the incident room on 0161 856 0040 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

I know the media have a tendancy to sensationalise, but the phrases “poses a clear danger to children” and that the police are saying not to approach him make me once again wonder, what the hell is going on with our justice system. Why do we continually let these people out to re-offend. It is the one aspect of my job that makes me cross. We as police officers do a very difficult job getting people convicted, it’s not as easy as you think! But then the prison system which is now entirely soft with playstations and satellite TV lets people out early, not because they have earned it, or redeemed themselves, or been reformed, but because we don’t have the space in our prisons any more, and it costs money to keep people locked up.

The solution is easy. Build more frigging prisons, and put tax up to pay for it. I would happily pay more tax to keep people like this away from our children.

Update: Knowles has handed himself into police and is in custody