British police have arrested a dangerous Northern Irish paedophile who went missing from a bail hostel near Manchester.
William Knowles (44), from Belfast, has a string of child sex convictions believed to date back to 1996 and has been regarded as a "high-risk" offender who poses a danger to children.
He has a long history of grooming and sexually abusing children, Greater Manchester Police said. He is also known to target vulnerable mothers to gain access to their children.
Greater Manchester Police handout of William Knowles
The Probation Service said Knowles was jailed in 2001 for the attempted abduction of a 10-year-old girl and the kidnap of an eight-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy. He was released from prison in July 2005 but recalled the same month.
Knowles was re-released on licence in December last year but disappeared from the hostel in Bury, Greater Manchester, on Tuesday.
He was arrested last night on Portland Street in Manchester city centre after a major police manhunt.
Ports were notified as police believed Knowles may have tried to flee to Northern Ireland via Scotland.