Leeds paedophile stayed at the home of unsuspecting woman with her young daughter
Mum said she had no idea he was convicted of child-sex offences
A convicted paedophile has been jailed for staying at a woman’s house where she lived with her young daughter.
The visit put Jan Hajnala in breach of a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) he was previously given for attempting communicate with young girls over the internet in 2022.
The 49-year-old Czech admitted the breach, along with another for installing apps on his phone, which is also prohibited under the terms of the order.
His brief stay at the woman’s home also put him in breach of the sex offender register, for failing to notify the authorities.
With a translator used at Leeds Crown Court to assist him, it was heard that Hajnala, of Cross Gates Road, Cross Gates, was initially given an eight-month suspended sentence in October 2022, along with a 10-year SHPO and 10 years on the sex offender register.
During a routine visit by officers to his home in January last year, they checked his internet devices and found he had installed and deleted various apps, including Snapchat and Telegram.
They found images of children he had downloaded, but they were not illegal. However, prosecutor Jade Edwards said there was evidence that conversations online had been deleted.
Then in May of this year, a young girl let slip at school that Hajnala had stayed at her home.
Her mother was a friend of the defendant. He had come to their home, enjoyed a barbecue and stayed.
The mother later told police that the daughter had slept in her bed with her, while Hajnala slept in the girl’s bed. She said that the youngster was never left alone with him.
She also said she had little idea that he was a convicted sex offender.
He stayed for two nights before leaving, and admitted giving the girl a hug and a kiss before he left.
However, the court was told that a neighbour had witnessed the interactions in the garden, and said there was “significant physical contact” between Hajnala and the young girl.
Hajnala, who appeared over a video link from HMP Leeds where he was being held on remand, became vocal during the hearing and denied there was such contact.
Mitigating on his behalf, Lucy Brown conceded there was a “level of persistence” with Hajnala’s breaches, but said he could be dealt with in the community, asking the judge to give him “one last opportunity”.
Judge Neil Clark said there was no suggestion there had been any sexual offending.
He also said Hajnala was socially isolated and lonely due to his inability to speak English.
But he said the offending was “persistent and repeated”. He jailed him for 30 months. His SHPO will remain in place, as will his name of the sex offender register.