A convicted rapist who breached his sexual harm prevention order by deleting apps on his phone will have to wait until next month to learn his fate.

In 2005, Christian Williamson, now 33, was given an extended jail sentence for raping a woman. And in the years since, he has been in and out of court accused of breaching court orders and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

He was back before Oxford Crown Court this week to be sentenced for breaching a sexual harm prevention order, imposed by a Manchester judge in 2014, by deleting apps for Facebook, Snapchat and a dating site.

READ MORE: Bungling burglars crashed car then fled

But Judge Michael Gledhill QC put the case off for a month after Williamson’s lawyer, Dana Bilan, asked him to order the probation service compile a pre-sentence report looking at alternatives to an immediate jail sentence.

She acknowledged that her client would be remanded in custody, but added: “It is perhaps the best option as the alternative would be much longer than that [in prison].”

Adjourning the case until May 19, Judge Gledhill said: “I am just prepared to adjourn sentence in this case.

“I’m making no promises as to the appropriate sentence in this case. All sentencing options are open.”

When Williamson appeared before Oxford Magistrates’ Court earlier this month, the justices heard that the police were called out to the Wallingford home of the defendant’s partner on Valentine’s Day over concerns for the woman’s welfare.

READ MORE: Scales of Justice: Latest cases from Oxford Magistrates' Court

The officers saw the defendant had a number of applications on his phone, including for Facebook, Snapchat and dating site Cuddle.

Specialist police officers from Thames Valley’s public protection department, tasked with monitoring the sex offender, returned to the property on March 1.

Williamson was out but he’d left his phone in the property. His partner, who answered the door, handed the phone over to the officers.

They could see that the defendant had deleted the apps that had been seen on the phone a fortnight earlier.

By deleting the apps – and any web history with them – he was in breach of a sexual offence prevention order.  

Nony Umenyiora, the crown prosecutor at the magistrates’ court in early April, described Williamson as a ‘violent, dangerous sexual predator’. The defendant, of Albemarle Street, Hull, had previous convictions for rape, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and breaching court orders.

Breach of a sexual harm prevention order carries a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment. However, punishments vary widely depending on the seriousness of the breach.

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

For news updates straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on news@nqo.com or 01865 425 445.