A repeat sex offender from Tonbridge has been jailed for seven years after officers examining his phone while he was in custody uncovered further offences involving an underage teenage girl. Luis Clifton, 22, was initially arrested on April 22, 2026, on suspicion of breaching a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) following an unannounced police visit to his home. Officers seized a number of electronic devices, including a mobile phone which Clifton was prohibited from possessing under the terms of his order. While Clifton was being interviewed in custody, specialist investigators began examining the phone. They discovered he had been communicating with an underage teenage girl through a social media application.
Officers raced to identify the teenage victim
Police established that the contact amounted to a further alleged breach of Clifton’s SHPO and immediately began working to identify the vulnerable teenager. The girl and her parents were located and contacted while Clifton remained in police custody. Evidence subsequently provided to investigators revealed further offences. Clifton, of Oakmead, Tonbridge, was then further arrested while still in detention. He was later charged with six counts of sexual activity with a child, breaching his Sexual Harm Prevention Order, failing to comply with Sex Offenders Register requirements, two counts of making indecent images of children and threatening to share an intimate photograph. Clifton pleaded guilty to the offences.
Seven-year prison sentence
He appeared at Maidstone Crown Court on Monday, July 27, where he was sentenced to seven years in prison. Clifton was also handed a 10-year restraining order preventing him from contacting the victim. His Sexual Harm Prevention Order has also been extended. Detective Maddison Jarvis, the investigating officer, praised the work of investigators who identified the victim while Clifton remained in custody. She said: “Our investigators worked diligently under pressure in a race against the custody clock to identify and contact the victim whilst Clifton was detained. “This ensured he was arrested for further, and more serious, offences about which he was then interviewed. “Clifton is a depraved individual who showed no regard for the restrictions imposed by the court that allowed him to live in the community. “Instead, he wrongly believed he could get away with committing further offences.”
Police warn offenders are regularly monitored
Detective Jarvis said police regularly monitor registered sex offenders to ensure they comply with restrictions imposed upon them. She added: “We regularly monitor sex offenders to ensure they comply with the conditions placed on them and will take action if we believe they are being broken, as in this case. “For anyone who is a victim of this type of crime, I would urge you to please report it to police. “It is never too late to contact our specialist investigators and we will listen to you and support you throughout.”
