A TEENAGER who moved to York after being convicted of sexually abusing a seven-year-old girl in Scotland has escaped jail - but the city's police today declared they will be watching his every move.

Ashley Boyd, 16, was sentenced to three years' probation and 240 hours community service at Stranraer Sheriff's Court after he pleaded guilty to a charge of using lewd, indecent, libidinous practices and behaviour.

Boyd, who was also placed on the sex offenders' register for two-and-a-half years, is now in education in York, where he lives with his family after they were forced out of Newton Stewart, near Dumfries. He is living in Huntington.

The parents of his victim, who had described him as a "sexual predator", are believed to be devastated by the court's verdict. They were too upset to talk to the Evening Press today.

But York police moved to reassure people. Superintendent Alison Higgins, operations manager at York Police, said Boyd would be monitored "from the moment he wakes up until the time he goes to bed".

The attack was said to have angered residents in his home town, which is hundreds of miles away from York, and forced his family to move to the city.

In Scottish law, the identities of offenders who are aged over 16 can be published.

Previously, the family of Boyd's victim told how they were concerned the teenager would target another young family with young children in York.

The child's father said: "We just don't want it to happen to somebody else."

Supt Higgins said Boyd was now subject to a public protection panel, to which all sex offenders were referred.

She said: "He will be monitored throughout the community and will not go away from our view. He will be monitored by children's services, probation, housing, employment - every part of his daily life."

Jill Holbert, head of York Youth Offending Services, said "The Youth Offending Team is unable to make comment on the cases individual young people.

"The kind of work that would take place in these circumstances would usually be undertaken over a long term period."

Updated: 15:48 Tuesday, September 02, 2003