AN amateur ice skater from Oxford who groomed and abused two vulnerable young girls has been released from prison.

Joseph Tsang, formerly of Sandy Lane, Oxford, was jailed in February 2016 for 15 years for child sexual offences, including the rape of a 15-year-old.

The ‘well-known’ ice skater had got in contact with the victim on Facebook. They later met at a hotel where he assaulted her and twice raped her.

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Tsang also met a 14-year-old girl at an ice rink before keeping in touch via social media.

When she came to his home, he took her into his bedroom and locked the door. He went onto molest her before removing his clothing and making her engage in a sex act.

The Ministry of Justice have since confirmed that Tsang has been released from prison, eight years into his sentence.

A spokesperson for the Government department said: “Sex offenders face some of the strictest licence conditions and can be put back behind bars if they break the rules at any point in their sentence.”

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Tsang, who in 2009 appeared alongside pro skaters Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean on ITV’s Dancing on Ice, was found guilty in January 2015 of inciting a girl under-16 to engage in sexual activity, sexual activity with a child under-16 and making indecent images of children and bailed.

Shortly before a second trial in August that year, when he was accused of raping the 15-year-old girl he met on Facebook and molesting a 14-year-old girl he had met through the ice rink, he fled the country.

He reportedly flew to his native Hong Kong disguised as his sister – although he later denied it – then lived in hiding until an old school friend tipped off the Mail on Sunday who in turn informed Interpol.

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Tsang was found guilty in his absence and, later, labelled a ‘sexual predator’ by the judge who gave him a 15 year jail term. That sentence was upheld by the Court of Appeal, which disagreed with Tsang’s lawyer’s claims the 15-year term was too tough.

In March 2016, when Tsang returned before Oxford Crown Court, his barrister claimed that the ice skater had not escaped by impersonating his sister but, instead, had gone to Hong Kong as his mother was seriously ill.

Judge Eccles imposed an additional six-month jail term for the breach of bail. However, this was later revoked as it was discovered that the authorities in Hong Kong had not given consent for Tsang to be prosecuted for failing to surrender to custody, making his conviction for the offence unlawful.