Police are handing out photographs of a sex offender on the run in Oxfordshire in a bid to get him back behind bars.

Andrew Gallagher, 52, was jailed for two years after launching a campaign of harassment against a mother-of-two in Crowmarsh Gifford, near Wallingford.

He was released halfway through his sentence last July but went missing five months later when he failed to sign the Sex Offender’s Register and is wanted on recall to prison.

Gallagher was spotted in Crowmarsh Gifford on Sunday, sparking a police manhunt.

Last night, his photograph was distributed in pubs and clubs around the area.

South Oxfordshire police commander Supt Amanda Pearson said: “We appeal for anyone who may have seen him or allowed him to sleep on their floor or sold him a car not to approach him but contact police as soon as possible.”

Gallagher was arrested after police found a handgun, bullets, chloroform, a dagger and duct tape at his caravan in Wallingford three years ago.

Police believe he speaks with a Bradford accent and may be riding a dark blue Cannondale mountain bike.

Call Thame CID on 08458 505505 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.