Paedophiles’ circus act
Pervert pair known to be approaching children flee after sighting near big top
TWO dangerous paedophiles spotted lurking near a circus had to receive a Garda escort after receiving threats in Co. Donegal at the weekend.
Child rapist James White, 48, and his friend Jason Lydiard, 26, registered as sex offenders with gardaí in Letterkenny on Friday. However, sightings of them in several Donegal towns sparked a social media frenzy.
And it appears locals’ concerns are well-founded as gardaí have intelligence that the pair – both originally from the North and considered ‘high-risk sex offenders’ – have been approaching children.
Lydiard – who also uses the name Alexis Guesto and considers himself a Born-Again Christian – is suspected of using a fake social media profile as part of his plans to identify potential victims.
With nine previous convictions for sexual assault, assaults causing harm and threats to kill, White is considered to be the more dangerous of the two men.
White, who is originally from Armagh, was jailed here in 1998 for horrific attacks – two counts of buggery and five charges of sexual assault – on a teenage boy in Co. Meath. He was freed in 2003.
The paedophile also once threatened to kill a social worker with a hammer, and has 62 previous convictions in all, including sexual assault, assault causing bodily harm and threats to kill. After completing his sentence here, he returned to the North in 2006 and was living in different areas across the border.
Although White and Lydiard served time in the North, they are still required to inform gardaí of their whereabouts here.
A Garda bulletin was sent to every station in the country to warn officers to be on the lookout for the pair.
Investigators believe the depraved pair became friends after Lydiard, originally from Co. Down, was freed from custody in the North earlier this year. He had finished a seven-month sentence for ignoring a court order banning him from online dating sites.
Concerns from residents in Donegal prompted several to post and share extensively pictures of the pair’s car online.
The pair tried to buy a new car in Donegal on Friday evening but were recognised by the car dealer.
On Saturday morning they were chased from a car park in Strabane, Co. Tyrone, and fled back to Donegal. That evening they contacted gardaí and were pictured at Trusk on the outskirts of Ballybofey receiving a Garda escort towards Castlederg, Co. Tyrone.
One local man who observed the pair being escorted towards the border said the sex offenders are not welcome locally, and he warned that locals will be keeping watch if they return. ‘Our message here is quite simple – they are not welcome to stay in Donegal and will never be welcome,’ he said.
‘They may have served their time in prison but they still pose a danger to our children and we will not stand by and watch them live amongst us. If they come back here they will be sent a very direct message to that effect again.’
The pair were first spotted in Letterkenny on Friday and were seen close to a circus in the town.
‘They are a danger to our children’