A sex offender who was on the run after bolting to London will soon be back behind bars after he was caught.
Lewis Jones of Worcester was arrested and handcuffed in Commercial Road, Whitechapel today after a police appeal.
He will go straight back to prison, West Mercia Police has confirmed.
The 26-year-old fled to London after boarding a train at Worcester's Foregate Street Railway Station on Thursday, January 12 and was initially believed to be in Camden.
But his offender managers monitored his movements closely from Worcester Police Station in Castle Street and were able to gain intelligence about his whereabouts.
Sporting a beard instead of his usual clean-shaven look, as seen in his custody photos, Jones was sleeping rough and known to be frequenting soup kitchens when police swooped and made the arrest.
He is pictured here moments after he was caught.
Detective Inspector Dave Knight of Proactive CID said: "Lewis Jones was arrested for recall to prison in Commercial Road, Whitechapel, London this afternoon.
"South Worcestershire Police Offender Management Officers, working with The Metropolitan Police, had responded to intelligence and found him sleeping rough. He will be returned to prison.
"This is a great example of various departments across West Mercia Police and The Met working together for a common purpose, and underlines the value of good old fashioned police work, on foot, putting in the miles. "
Jones, of Worcester and who also has links to Malvern, was believed at one stage to be in Camden Town after police received new intelligence about his whereabouts in London.
The 26-year-old was sentenced to one year and 10 months in prison on August 3 last year and released on January 6 this year to an approved premises in Worcester.
But due to his behaviour since, he was recalled to serve the remainder of that sentence in prison rather than on licence in the community.
Jones was seen boarding a train at Worcester Foregate Street station and was believed to be heading to London on Thursday, January 12.
The Ham&High and East London Advertiser's sister paper the Worcester News reported in 2019 how Jones appeared at Worcester Magistrates Court for two charges of breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) by altering a Facebook profile by using a false name and by being in possession of an internet-enabled phone.
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