A MAN who received a suspended prison sentence for child abduction is now behind bars after approaching youngsters and offering them £10 each for information about damage to his home.

Trevor George Hallcup received the 12-month jail term, suspended for two years, by a judge at Durham Crown Court, in January last year, after admitting four counts of child abduction.

It related to him taking youngsters, aged 11 to 14, on a ‘scary’ ride in the back of his van, without their parents’ knowledge, in 2015.

He was ordered to undergo 30-probation supervised activity days and an indefinite restraining order was put in place forbidding unsupervised contact with children.

But 34-year-old Hallcup was back before the court, albeit appearing via video link from Teesside Magistrates’ Court, which has access for wheelchair users, having admitted breaches of the suspended sentence and restraining orders.

The court heard it arose after his car and home, in Dunn Road, Peterlee, were said to have been damaged in early June.

His counsel, Annelise Haugstad, said he reported it to police but claims he was told to bring more information to assist with inquiries.

Miss Haugstad said he took the response, “too literally”, and it led to him approaching a group of local youngsters, said to be in the 11 to 13 age bracket, to question them about who damaged his property.

He offered them £10 each to come up with names, which yielded some information and he is then said to have invited the youngsters back to his house, where he would let them see his puppies, to tell him more.

Hallcup is also said to have told them: “Everyone round here thinks I’m a nonce, but I’m not.”

A psychologist’s report presented to the court stated he has a personality disorder, while a probation assessment said working with the service since his last sentence has seen his perceived risk to children reduce from ‘high’ to ‘medium’, but, given the recent offences, it would rise again to ‘high’.

Judge Christopher Prince said: “It sets off warning lights, flashing very strongly at the moment.”

He agreed to the drawing up of a psychiatric assessment and an up-dated probation report. Despite protestations from Hallcup, the judge remanded him in custody until the sentencing hearing, on October 12.