A SEX offender who stalked his neighbour for nine years is back behind bars after entering an exclusion zone around his victim's home, The Northern Echo can reveal.

But military historian Ken Ward, who repeatedly exposed himself and performed sex acts in front of ex-policewoman Mandy Dunford, could be out within days - and free to move in next door to his victim within weeks.

Ward stalked Ms Dunford, 55, in the lanes and fields around their properties near Chop Gate on the North York Moors for almost a decade.

The 68-year-old was finally jailed for five years in 2011 but was released after serving about half of his sentence.

However, it has now emerged that Ward has twice broken the terms of his parole by entering an exclusion area of between five and ten miles around Ms Dunford’s home.

It is understood he was warned after the first breach but sent back to prison last year after the second violation.

A parole board will decide this week if he can safely be released.

Ward would then be free to return to his dilapidated home – which is just 200 yards from Ms Dunford’s property – in June when his five-year term ends.

After his conviction, police sought a sexual offences prevention order (SOPO) that would have stopped Ward from returning to his home at all.

However, Judge Peter Armstrong at Teesside Crown Court issued an order that merely prevented him from accessing his victim’s land.

Ms Dunford has made repeated attempts to challenge the SOPO but without success.

In a fresh bid to keep Ward from moving back in next door, the ex-policewoman has sought help from Richmond Rishi Sunak.

Mr Sunak has employed a senior London barrister to look at the case and has acquired transcripts from the court hearings.

The lawyer believes there is a case for the SOPO order to be changed to prevent Ward from returning home - and has written to the Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders (DPP) urging her to act.

Ms Dunford is so worried Ward will come back that she has bought another property which she can move to at short notice if necessary.

North Yorkshire Police are also worried about the risk Ward poses, even offering Ms Dunford £5,000 to fit a panic room.

She said: “The prospect of him coming back has always been in the future, but now it's just a few weeks away.

"When I go out of the kitchen door it all comes flooding back to me and I think soon he could be stood there.”

Ms Dunford said she was “chuffed” that the MP had got involved.

“It's taken a long time but at least he's done something - I'm really pleased.

"Unfortunately the Director of Public Prosecutions hasn’t wanted to know before - will she listen to Rishi? We’ll see."

Mr Sunak said he wanted to do what he could to help Ms Dunford.

“I am very concerned about the way Mandy Dunford has been treated in this process and I am determined to get to the bottom of it. The exclusion order seems to fly in the face of common sense and needs to be amended.

“It’s of particular concern that the original order and the exclusion zone was drawn up without Ms Dunford’s involvement. If she had been consulted this could well have been avoided.”