Paul Hart

Paul Hart, a 58-year-old resident of London Road, Westcliff, has a long history of sexual offences dating back to 1987. His criminal record includes 49 convictions since 1986, with the first sexual offence being gross indecency in 1987. Subsequent convictions include indecently assaulting two boys under 16 in 1990, sexually assaulting a child under 13 in 2007 for which he received 30 months' imprisonment, and indecently assaulting a boy under 14 in 2014, resulting in a six-year sentence.

In 2020, police raided Hart's then home in Blackdown North Road, Westcliff, uncovering communications with fellow paedophiles. This led to a 2022 conviction for distributing indecent images of children, where Hart admitted to police his interest in young teenagers and saw no wrong in sharing such images. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison and received a lifelong Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO). In 2024, Hart was caught breaching the SHPO eight times and sentenced to 14 months.

The latest incident occurred in August 2025, when police discovered Hart in possession of two secret mobile phones without notifying authorities. Analysis of the devices revealed he had downloaded three social media applications—Facebook, Telegram, and Zangi—without permission and used them to message 'young-looking men' and exchange nude photos. Although the recipients' ages could not be verified, the breaches violated the terms of his SHPO.

Hart was charged with five counts of breaching the SHPO: two for possessing the phones without disclosure and three for unauthorised use of the social media apps. He appeared before Basildon Crown Court on Thursday, where Judge Shane Collery KC highlighted the severity of the case. 'In my view, there is a risk of very serious harm here,' the judge stated. 'Your previous convictions show that you are predisposed to abusing young men under the age of 16. The cause for real concern is that there is now a pattern being established where you are failing to comply with restrictions that the court is seeking to put in place. You need to break this cycle. The court put in place these provisions to protect the public. The court expects them to be abided by.'

Hart was sentenced to 30 months' imprisonment for these breaches, marking his return behind bars. The case was reported exclusively by Charles Thomson, Crime & Investigations Reporter for the Echo, drawing on court proceedings at Basildon Crown Court in Essex.