A CONVICTED child sex offender has been forced to flee his home following a protest by local residents.

The 62-year-old man was housed close to a children’s play park, sparking angry protests from concerned parents in Haddington.

A demonstration outside the man’s small council house earlier this month saw about 40 protesters gather to chant for his removal and wave a large ‘Get Him Out’ banner.

And last week, the man’s home was attacked by an unknown assailant who daubed the words ‘beast’ and ‘paedo’ in black paint over the front of the property (see image below).

East Lothian Courier:

The offender was then rushed from his home in a taxi on Friday morning, leaving delighted residents to celebrate his removal.

One woman, who lives nearby, said: “This is a triumph for the local people who were disgusted to find out he had been moved here.

“He was very close to our new play park and he was always hanging about pretending he was walking his dog.

“We as parents were terrified for our children’s safety but the recent protests have shown people do have the power if they gather together and do something about it.

“It just goes to show we won’t be bullied into accepting his sort around here.”

The convicted sex offender had a Sexual Offences Prevention Order placed on him in 2015 after he had been convicted of sex offences against women and children.

As part of the order, the man was banned from any communication with children but has appeared in court several times for breaching the order.

In 2016, he was jailed for meeting with and tickling two young girls over a nine-month period in North Berwick.

And last year he was handed two prison sentences for befriending young girls on days out at Edinburgh Castle, the National Museum of Flight and at a church hall in Musselburgh.

East Lothian Courier:

The house is currently boarded up

A spokesperson for East Lothian Council said: “Public safety is of paramount importance and we work closely with our partner agencies to ensure that Scottish Government guidance relating to the safe management of offenders is followed.

“Although we cannot comment on individual cases, we can confirm that there are robust processes and procedures in place to manage sex offenders.”