In 2018, the Offender Database confirmed that Brian Ward, then 62, of Pontyclun, Rhondda Cynon Taf, was finally apprehended after five years on the run. Ward had disappeared initially mid-trial at Newport Crown Court in 2013 but was found guilty in his absence of gross indecency with a child under 16 and four counts of indecent assault on a female. His evasion ended when South Wales Police acted on a tip-off and discovered him hiding in a sophisticated “hideout” behind a false wall in a flat in Cardiff, South Glamorgan.
The dramatic capture occurred after officers outside the property heard voices and tracked a ringtone to a specific area of the flat after calling a phone linked to him. Upon entering and searching the property, they discovered that a bedroom mirror was hinged like a doorway, concealing a secret compartment where Ward had been cowering to avoid justice. Superintendent Ceri Hughes noted that Ward was visibly angry upon his discovery and had shown a total lack of remorse for the “appalling actions” that had led to his original convictions.
Ward was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court to five years and 20 weeks in prison. The judge emphasised that the sentence reflected both the gravity of his non-recent sexual offences and his deliberate attempt to subvert the justice system by fleeing for half a decade. Under standard UK sentencing guidelines, Ward was required to serve at least half of his term in custody before being eligible for release on license, during which he would be under the strict supervision of the National Probation Service.
As a result of his convictions, Brian Ward remains on the Sex Offenders Register for life. His status as a high-profile absconder means he is managed under the most stringent Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). These official monitoring requirements involve regular residency checks and digital inspections by the police to ensure he does not pose a further risk to children. Any future attempt to disappear or breach his notification requirements would result in an immediate return to prison to serve the remainder of his life-long registration under police scrutiny.
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