Sex offender allegedly worked as Santa at Petco

A convicted sex offender was allegedly caught working as Santa Claus at a Christmas event at a Petco in Virginia over the weekend.

Leonard Russell Kidd, 37, pleaded guilty in 2002 to assaulting a 6-year-old boy, according to The Roanoke Times.

He was reportedly not allowed to be at events where children were present without special permission from his probation officer.

It was later revealed that the probation officer had no idea Kidd had taken the Santa job.

After his conviction, Kidd was sentenced to six years in prison and set to be released in 2009.

According to a 2009 SWVaToday.com report, a clinical psychologist said he was "at a high risk to offend."

Another evaluation placed him "in a group of sex offenders who demonstrated a 100 percent probability of violent recidivism within seven years."

As a result of these tests, Kidd was designated a "predator" and confined beyond his prison sentence.

Again in 2012, a psychologist said he "would continue to pose a high risk to society," according to the Bristol Herald Courier.

He was released last year under the condition that he would stay away from children.

WDBJ7 reports that Kidd posed for photos with children and pets at the Petco holiday event.

According to the Virginia State Police, Kidd renewed his registration on the sex offender registry in October. He listed the Wytheville Petco as his employer.

The company told WDBJ7 later this week that Kidd is no longer employed there.

The Virginia Department of Corrections is further investigating the terrible incident.