A Fife paedophile will not return to Scotland after being hounded out of his home.
Nicholas Denison was placed on a court-ordered curfew but fled from Crossgates to Cornwall after neighbours protested outside his home.
Differences in the Scottish and English legal systems meant the curfew could not initially be implemented south of the border, due to a technicality.
A sheriff had previously agreed to suspend the sentence to allow Denison to sell his Baxter Road home and relocate elsewhere in Scotland.
However, despite trying to buy or rent five other properties across the country, the 61-year-old was unable to secure a suitable home.
Checks meant home purchases broke down
At Dunfermline Sheriff Court solicitor Mark Harrower said Denison’s marriage had broken down and he now has no reason to return to Scotland from the Truro area.
He told Sheriff Wyllie Robertson: “This doesn’t appear to be a situation of his own making.
“He was on the order for a month and a half before he moved for his own safety.
“He moved to Cornwall expecting the tag to be transferred.”
However he said an “anomaly in the legislation” prevented that from happening.
He said: “Mr Denison has made big efforts to find an address in Scotland but that has not been possible in the time allowed.”
He said each time an address was identified, the time taken to carry out the necessary checks to see if it was suitable – including its proximity to local schools – meant the property became unavailable.
He asked a sheriff to revoke the Restriction of Liberty Order, which could not be served in England and add a curfew condition to his Community Payback Order, which would allow the English justice system to take over.
“Mr Denison’s marriage has come to an end,” he said.
“He and his wife have now separated.
“He has no reason to come back to Scotland, except to comply with a court order.”
Sheriff Robertson agreed to vary the orders and told Denison he must serve a three-month curfew under the supervision of the English system.
Community protest
The residents of Baxter Road had previously written to a sheriff expressing their concern at Denison living in their midst.
He had sent indecent images of his genitals to accounts on social media channel Kik, which he believed were going to 12 and 13 year old girls.
However the accounts were actually decoys being run by police officers.
At Dunfermline Sheriff Court in June he was ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work and placed on a three-year supervision order.
He was also ordered to serve a four-month curfew and placed on the Sex Offenders Register.
Shortly after he was sentenced, residents held a protest about him remaining in the area.
One of Denison’s neighbours later ended up in the dock over the situation after shouting and swearing at the sex offender’s wife.
Colin Flockhart pled guilty to acting in a threatening or abusive manner towards Karen Denison from within his own garden in Baxter Road on June 19.
He was fined £320.
