A CHILD sex offender who sent letters to an underage girl from prison was branded a danger as he was jailed again yesterday (Friday, December 13).

Jonathan Pennington, 24, was banned from having any contact with children after he was caught with sick indecent images.

But within days of dodging prison in the summer, the pervert was found with a teenage girl hiding in the base of his bed.

He was locked up on remand for breaching court orders, but continued to flout them by sending love letters from his jail cell.

Yesterday, he appeared to be sentenced for a raft of offences committed between June and August and was given 18 months.

The judge at Teesside Crown Court, Recorder Bernard Gateshill, told him: "I'm quite satisfied you present a danger to young girls.

"In my judgement, these breaches of the order which is designed to control your activities were both deliberate and persistent."

Pennington, from Billingham, was given a suspended prison sentence in June for downloading indecent images of children.

He was made the subject of a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) to stop him having an unsupervised contact with under-16s.

Yet within a week, a schoolgirl who had been reported missing was found hiding inside a bed at his home in Bannockburn Way.

Robert Mochrie, mitigating, said Pennington was afflicted by autism, was immature and did not realise the gravity of his offending.

"There is no suggestion he is roaming the streets of Billingham looking for any young girl to strike up a relationship with," he said.

"He is somebody who would benefit from supervision intervention to ensure that he stays on the right path, and to support him generally.

"Your Honour may feel he may not have appreciated the severity of the nature of offending at the time."

Mr Recorder Gateshill told Pennington: "You have demonstrated a perverse interest in images of child sexual abuse.

"It may be that you have personal difficulties, but I am quite satisfied that you present a danger to young girls."

The court heard that the he downloaded images of children as young as six on to two computers at his home.

Pennington admitted five breaches of the SOPO, breaching his suspended sentence, obstructing police and keeping a child from a responsible adult.