As if being homeless weren’t frightening enough, desperate families staying in the city’s homeless shelters must contend with a growing number of sex offenders in their midst, a shocking new report obtained by The Post reveals.
At least a dozen Level 2 and 3 offenders — those have who committed the most heinous acts — lived in family shelters this year and last, according to the report by state Sen. Jeffrey Klein (D-Bronx).
Two of the sex fiends were sent back to prison for parole violations.
In 2007, Klein found all of six in family shelters.
Among those cited in the new report are Charles Brown, convicted of raping a 9-year-old girl he was baby-sitting; Fred Scott, convicted of sodomizing an 8-year-old girl; and Angel Rios, who raped 5- and 7-year-old girls.
“Ex-cons come right out of jail and think they can hide out in here,” said a dad of two little girls who were staying with him at a Bronx shelter — the same shelter where Landell Ellis, who was convicted of sexual abuse, lived with his family.
“[Sex offenders] don’t see people; they see targets,” said the concerned father.
Legislators have refused to close legal loopholes that let convicted predators live among families with kids. The report says those seeking shelter are not even subject to criminal background checks. Nor are shelters required to check the sex-offender registry when a new family or an adult couple is admitted.
Klein promised to make a new push for a bill to keep sickos out of such shelters, saying, “It’s time that we stop sweeping this problem under the rug.’’
The Department of Homeless Services denied that Brown, Scott or Rios had been housed in family shelters. It had no immediate comment on the other nine.
“I have to look over my shoulder every second to see if someone is eyeing my daughter,” said Pedro Galarza, 48.
His 10-year-old lived with him at a shelter in Bushwick, where their neighbors included Randolph Holton, a convicted sex offender.
Homeless Services said the city’s hands are tied when it comes to offering offenders shelter.
“Pursuant to court orders, Homeless Services is under legal mandate to provide shelter to all homeless individuals or eligible families regardless of their criminal background, including sex offender status,” the department said in a statement.
Julio de Jesus, who manages a Brooklyn shelter, said, “What do you do with a man who was once a sex offender but now has a family that is homeless? Once they come to my facility, I can’t deny them services.’’
And privacy laws prohibit shelter officials from alerting their residents to the predators among them.