‘absolute predator’ | 

Paedophile forced to flee his home after vigilantes smash in windows

Matthew Higham fled the town after a home was attacked in the early hours of Sunday morning last week

Yesterday at 20:52

A paedophile who preyed on a teenage girl he met through a church is looking for a new bail address after he was hounded out of Portrush.

Matthew Higham fled the town after a home was attacked in the early hours of Sunday morning last week.

The police have since launched a criminal damage investigation.

It is understood the property on Glenshesk Park was attacked at around 4am and that a number of windows were broken.

While Higham is on bail for sexually assaulting the teenager, he had been living in a house overlooking a children’s play park.

Higham, previously from Coolsythe Road in Randalstown, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting his 13-year-old victim on June 23 this year.

After his confession at Antrim Crown Court last October, prosecuting counsel Suzanne Gallagher asked for a charge of sexual assault by penetration to be left on the books.

Judge Alistair Devlin granted the application and released Higham on bail.

Describing the abuse as “utterly disgraceful,” Judge Devlin said the bail variation in relation to a new address could be done administratively.

The judge told him while it was up to him how he engaged with probation services, “it would be in your interests to co-operate with them”.

Speaking out after the pervert appeared in court, the victim’s mum said the paedophile had caused lasting damage to her daughter.

She added: “He is an absolute predator, and he’s left my daughter suffering from PTSD, flashbacks and nightmares to such an extent that I have to sleep on her floor every night.

“She’s been prescribed beta blockers and sedatives. Just imagine that, having to drug your 13-year-old daughter.”

Higham was due to be sentenced on January 11 but a new date is to be set because of a delay in preparing a psychiatric report on his mental health problems.