A CONVICTED child sex offender was forced to flee his home this week after angry neighbours found out about his past.

Concerned parents have forced the man to move after demonstrating for two nights outside his flat in Prestonpans.

Police turned up in riot vans at the town’s Redburn Road to keep the peace during the noisy demonstration outside the man’s home and officers eventually removed him from the area on Tuesday night.

The man was placed on the sex offenders' register for two years after he admitted sexually assaulting a young girl in an alleyway in Musselburgh.

The former binman was also sentenced to carry out 240 hours of unpaid work following the conviction at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in 2013.

And this week about 30 angry residents surrounded the home demanding he be removed from the area.

Footage of the protest, involving parents and children from the town, was live-streamed on Facebook and viewed by hundreds of social media users.

One mother who attended the demonstration this week said she was “delighted” the crowd had forced the man out of the town after she said he was taken away by police officers for his own safety.

The mum-of-three, who did not want to be named, said: “Rumours swept through the town a couple of weeks ago that [the man] and his partner and a child had moved into flat near us.

“The area around here is full of families and there are lots of young children that play in the streets outside his home.

“As a mum of three kids, I can’t take the chance with people like him around here. You just never know what could happen.

“He’s attacked one young girl once and he can do it again – people like him never change, no matter what they say.

“The parents around here decided to do something about it and we organised a demo to try and get him out.

“The police have been great with us and we were delighted when they took him away – it just goes to show in certain situations people power can work.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We received a report of disturbance on Redburn Road, Prestonpans, around 9.55pm on Tuesday.

“Police attended and provided suitable advice.”