Sex offender ‘exposes himself at station’ weeks after being released from prison

| Senior Live News reporter Published October 20, 2026 8:51pm Updated October 20, 2026 8:51pm Convicted sex offender Paul Southern targeted passengers and railway staff at a busy station ‘for his own gain’ (Picture: British Transport Police) A brazen sex offender exposed himself in front of commuters just three weeks after being released from prison. Paul Southern, 47, of no fixed abode, was sent back to jail after being caught red-handed at Newcastle Central station. He went into the train station on the evening of Tuesday, August 18 and sat down on a bench, Newcastle Crown Court heard. At about 9.30pm, he exposed himself in the full view of passengers and staff. One railway crew member approached him quickly after noticing his twisted act, and alerted the British Transport Police (BTP). Sign up for all of the latest stories Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens. Following his arrest during an interview, Southern revealed his sole purpose for travelling to the station was to expose himself. Three weeks earlier, he had been released from prison where he had served a sentence for voyeurism he committed in February this year. He was caught lurking in the women’s toilets at the same railway station by police officers. He was handed a four-month prison sentence on March 26. Detective Constable Adil Ahmed from BTP said: ‘Southern clearly hasn’t changed his ways. It’s only right that he’s back behind bars. ‘On that day he acted with shocking levels of disregard for other commuters in the station, planning his offence in advance and subjecting others to a horrific ordeal for his own gain. ‘We take this type of intolerable behaviour extremely seriously, and we will continue put offenders like Southern before the courts to face justice. ‘If you’ve witnessed or been the victim of a sexual offence on the railway network, I urge you to report it to us by texting 61016 so we can take action.’ Southern pleaded guilty to exposure and failing to comply with his sexual offender notification requirements. He was jailed for four months at Newcastle Crown Court on October 6, and was ordered to re-sign the Sex Offenders Register for seven years. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page. Arrow MORE: Student admits murder of housemate stabbed 30 times in ‘cold-blooded execution’ Arrow MORE: Man gunned down in north London pub as police issue CCTV image of ‘disguised’ suspect Arrow MORE: Woman ‘counted down 3, 2, 1 before opening fire on kneeling neighbour’ Breaking News Never miss the biggest stories with breaking news alerts in your inbox.