Last updated at 01:34 20 December 2007

A convicted criminal has moved in with a married couple against their wishes after giving their address in court as his home.

Shane Sims, 19, has spent the last few days living with Brenda and Robert Cole after he was sentenced to a week's curfew for breaching a supervision order.

But the couple claim the first they knew about it was when Sims, a friend of their daughter, moved in on Thursday - followed by security contractors who put a box in a bedroom to monitor his movements with an ankle tag.

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Sims' tag keeps him indoors between 7pm and 7am much to the horror of the Coles, who both have learning difficulties.

Mrs Cole, 47, said: "It's turned our lives upside down.

"He's taken over the whole place. He sprawls across the sofa and he's always in the bathroom when you need it.

"It's an absolute disgrace. They've let a criminal come into our home and there is nothing we can do about it.

"How can he get away with giving false details? Can crooks pick anywhere they like and just move in? Who needs to break into a house when the courts will do it all for you?

"When the men turned up and installed the tag box, I thought it was some kind of a joke. I told them there had been a mistake but they just said it wasn't their problem."

Sims appeared before magistrates last Thursday where he admitted breaching a two-year supervision order imposed for assault.

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He gave the Coles' Bristol address as his bail address but the Probation Service did not verify it.

Sims claims he was told he could stay by the Coles' 16-year-old daughter Tanya after he fell out with his father.

He allegedly told Mrs Cole: "I'm staying here until the tag's off. There's f**k all you can do about it. The courts have told me to."

The court said it was looking into the situation but police said they could not act without a court warrant.

Sims said: "I said 'I'll be gone before Christmas' and I will be. I can't see what the problem is. They keep changing their minds. I don't even want to be here."

A spokeswoman for South Gloucestershire Council, whose social workers care for Mr and Mrs Cole, said: "We are seeking legal advice and doing all we can to resolve the situation."