A sex offender has been sent to jail after he breached an order banning him from using the internet.

Carl Cracknell, aged 33, and of Blackberry Lane, Weymouth was sentenced to four months in prison after he was found in possession of a laptop.

Weymouth Magistrates Court heard Cracknell was found in possession of a Compaq laptop on February 27, which breached a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) imposed by Bournemouth Crown Court in 2016.

Cracknell admitted the breach.

Richard Oakley, prosecuting, said on November 25, 2016, Cracknell appeared in court for the possession of indecent photographs of children, extreme pornography and indecent pseudo-photographs.

Cracknell was issued with an SHPO which banned him from having any device with internet access. He was also banned from possessing a device that can store images.

During a safeguarding visit, police found a laptop computer running at Cracknell’s home address. Cracknell was taken for an interview and admitted he had purchased the laptop six weeks before.

Mr Oakley said it was the second time Cracknell had breached the order, as on November 3 last year, he was given an internet enabled mobile telephone which he used as his own for a week.

Patricia Sheehan, mitigating, said Cracknell had become ‘socially isolated’ because of the order, losing family and friends and had taken a ‘stupid chance’ when he purchased the device.

Miss Sheehan said there were ‘big changes’ in Cracknell’s life as an old friend was soon to move in with him and become his flatmate.

“They have known each other for years. She’s had a pretty tough time and has always been able to talk to him and she has been able to be a listening post for him. She helped him get a job,” Miss Sheehan said.

Probation services officer Joanna Levitt said: “This is the second breach of the SHPO. The court may be minded to keep him in the community by way of a suspended sentence. But it is going to be very hard for the probation officer to manage due to his lack of adherence to the court order. The frequency of his offending is increasing which is going to be a concern. She (the officer) can only put so much in place to prevent him.”

Chairman of the bench Karen Spooner said the breach was so serious, only a custodial sentence could be justified.