A “high risk” man who sexually assaulted a woman after giving her a lift in his car, but was deemed unfit to stand trial or spend time in prison, will be released back into the community.

45-year-old William King was arrested in 2023 after committing the crime and was initially held on remand at Les Nicolles Prison.

He did not stand trial as he was found to be unfit, but Guernsey’s Royal Court found that he had committed the crime.

Described as having learning difficulties and autism, King has been held at Guernsey’s mental health facility since January 2025 where he was undergoing a sex offender treatment programme.

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Pictured: The Oberlands mental health facility at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital.

In May this year, the Ordinary Court was asked to decide if King could enter the next phase of his sex offender treatment programme, which involves “interacting with the community”. 

The court was told this would enable him to put the training he has received since being detained into practice. 

At that time, Judge Catherine Fooks said it was agreed that King can’t stay on Crevichon ward indefinitely, but more work was needed on the plan to reintegrate him into the community.

A new plan for King’s release has now been approved.

This is despite him being classified as at a “high risk” of reoffending by a Senior Probation Officer, and a “medium risk” of reoffending by a doctor who has treated him at the Oberlands.

The Ordinary Court also heard that King has breached his existing Sex Offences Prevention Order while being held at the hospital.

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Pictured: The Ordinary Court sat to consider King’s case.

The court backed ‘discharge plan’ will see King spend an increasing amount of time in the community over a period of four weeks, before moving to a court-approved address full time.

The plan can be slowed or stopped if King doesn’t follow the rules that will be set.

He will have ongoing support and monitoring from staff at the Oberlands, the probation service, and Guernsey Police during the four-week plan and for at least a couple of years after that.

A new SOPO is also being put in place, with a nightly curfew and clear directions that King can understand, outlining where he can and can’t go and what he should and shouldn’t be doing. This will include not being allowed to travel in a car with any woman other than his mother.

King’s re-integration into the community is likely to start within a fortnight.

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