A registered sex offender has appeared before magistrates after deleting the browser history on his new laptop and disposing of the old one, which prevented police from assessing its content.

Officers attended the home of 48-year-old Duncan Patterson at Moreton, Saundersfoot, on November 16, 2021.  There, they discovered that he was in possession of a new laptop.

"It was suggested that there had been some alteration concerning the browser history," Crown Prosecutor Sian Vaughan told Haverfordwest magistrates.

"Naturally this was in breach of the prevention order.

"He had also disposed of the old laptop because it was no longer working, but this was again in breach."

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Patterson pleaded guilty to the charge of breaching a sexual harm prevention order which had been imposed by Swansea Crown Court following his conviction in June 2015.

The breaches were committed between December 19, 2019 and November 11, 2021.

After hearing from the Crown Prosecution, magistrates declined jurisdiction, stating that the guidelines were beyond their powers of sentencing.

The matter will next be heard at Swansea Crown Court on January 10, 2023.

Patterson was released on unconditional bail.