Gary Glitter to sign sex register

Glitter served a 27-month prison sentence in Vietnam

Paedophile and former pop singer Gary Glitter has been ordered to sign the sex offenders' register after arriving back in the UK.

Glitter, who spent 27 months in a Vietnam jail for abusing two girls, left Heathrow airport for an undisclosed location on his return.

His solicitor called the singer's conviction a "travesty of justice".

Glitter, 64, and whose real name is Paul Gadd, became famous as a glam-rock star in the 1970s.

A judge at Uxbridge Magistrates' Court agreed to a notification order, which means Glitter must sign the register. The singer has 21 days to appeal against the order, which will last indefinitely.

Once he has been served papers by police, Glitter has three days to sign the register.

'Unfair trial'

He has informed police of the address at which he will be living, but the address has been kept secret.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said Glitter will be monitored by the authorities and that her "top priority" is to ensure children's safety.

She said: "I'm confident that we can protect children here and that is my top priority - the protection of children, not of offenders."

GARY GLITTER'S TRAVELS Deported from Vietnam on Tuesday Refused connecting flight from Bangkok to UK Flew to Chinese territory of Hong Kong Refused permission to enter Hong Kong Returned to Bangkok on Thursday Persuaded to return to UK

According to Glitter's solicitor, David Corker, Glitter said his conviction had been the result of an "unfair trial". The solicitor also said his client had used the past few days to make preparations for his return to the UK.

"Mr Gadd is pleased to be back in this country," Mr Corker said.

"The last few days, as you know, he's spent travelling around Asia.

"That time was not wasted. It enabled Mr Gadd and others to put into practice a plan for his proper and safe arrival here. Mr Gadd is not a well man. He needs medical attention.

"He's also unsurprisingly concerned about his safety, and these past few days have enabled the Metropolitan Police and I, on his behalf, to put into plan a proper procedure for his protection and his wellbeing, and I'm pleased to say that's now in place."

Glitter was denied entry to Hong Kong and twice to Thailand this week, after he refused to return to Britain.

Mr Corker said Glitter was eager to appear before a UK court in an attempt to clear his name.

Previous conviction

The solicitor said Uxbridge Magistrates' Court had not agreed to hear Glitter's claims that the Vietnamese system had mistreated him, but he hoped to have a future opportunity to have his case heard before a UK court.

Mr Corker also said his client feared he had caught tuberculosis while in prison.

Glitter was previously on the sex offenders register for seven years, after he was jailed in the UK for four months in 1999 for possessing images of child abuse.

He will be subject to monitoring and have to tell the police if he plans to go abroad. He can live where he wants in the UK, but he will be legally bound to notify the police of his intended address.

He could also face an order prohibiting him from going near children or using the internet.

The National Association of Probation Officers said it was likely Glitter would be assessed as high risk and would be subject to unannounced visits.

Earlier in the week Ms Smith said Glitter should be given a Foreign Travel Order, banning him from overseas travel.

She also set out proposals to prevent convicted paedophiles from travelling abroad and said Glitter had not had his passport renewed when he had been in Vietnam.

But shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve says Ms Smith has not thought through these plans.

The BBC's Jonathan Head says 19 countries had said they would refuse Glitter entry.

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