POLICE today dismissed claims that there are hundreds of paedophiles living in York and Scarborough.
The News of the World published figures for the number of child sex offenders in different towns and cities across the country, as part of its controversial "naming and shaming" campaign.
It said there were 230 in Scarborough, and 370 in York. The latter figure was repeated by a national tabloid newspaper today. But Detective Chief Inspector Steve Barlow, of York police, branded the figure for York "alarmist rubbish."
He said there were on average about 60 people on the sex offenders register - which includes all types of offenders - in the whole of the central division, which includes both York and Selby. And North Yorkshire police said it had 208 people on the register across the county.
Updated: 10:42 Monday, December 17, 2001
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