Latest Offenders Shetland

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A MAN from Shetland has been found guilty of sexual assault following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

The court heard that Ellis Birnie, 27, assaulted one woman during an outing.

The victim, who is diabetic, said that at the time she was very, very deeply asleep, almost comatose as her blood sugars were high.

She told the court: I was completely sparked out. I woke up at one point to find his hand inside my trousers.

I had come to enough to realise stuff was going on, but I was not fully alert, she said in pre-recorded evidence played to a jury at Birnies trial.

The woman said the incident occurred on October 2018 but told the court that Birnie had previously assaulted her at his home in Sandveien, Lerwick.

She said in September that year Birnie had shown her round at the address, including going into a bedroom.

The woman said she was pinned down and could not get up, and Birnie carried out sex acts.

Birnie had denied a string of charges during his trial but was convicted of three offences on Wednesday on majority verdicts by the jury.

He was found guilty of sexually assaulting his first victim on various occasions between 12 September and 3 December in 2018 at the address at Sandveien and other locations in Shetland.

Birnie was also found guilty of sexually assaulting a second woman in Shetland between 1 February and 24 August 2020.

Birnie was also convicted of engaging in abusive behaviour towards the second woman in 2020.

The trial judge, Lord Richardson, deferred sentence on Birnie until next month for the preparation of a background report.

Birnie was remanded in custody and placed on the sex offenders register.

Responding to the news, detective sergeant Bruce Peebles said: The conviction of Birnie sends a clear message to anyone found guilty of sexual offences, you will be brought to justice.

He befriended his vulnerable victims and I want to acknowledge their tremendous bravery, which has ultimately helped in this conviction. His actions will have had a long term effect on them and he must now face the consequences for his horrific behaviour.

I hope todays outcome will give them some form of closure.

We would take this opportunity to encourage anyone who has been a victim of such crimes that should they wish to report this to the police, they will be treated sensitively, listened to, and all such allegations will be investigated thoroughly.

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A sex offender who preyed on teenage girls has been remanded in custody.

A sex offender who preyed on teenage girls has been remanded in custody.

John Masterman, 39, of Leaside, Mossbank, admitted intentionally or recklessly touching a girl in Lerwick, when he carried out offences between 1st August and 31st August 2018.

His offending continued with another girl during 2021 when he sexually assaulted her at an address in the town between January and June.

He touched her sexually, kissing her on the lips and hugging her, placing his hands on her.

On 22nd June he pulled her on to his lap and pulled up her clothing before kissing her.

Lerwick Sheriff Court heard his second victim had been particularly vulnerable, having recently suffered a bereavement.

Procurator fiscal Duncan MacKenzie said police were called after the second victims mother became suspicious about Mastermans behaviour.

Masterman was taken to the police station to be interviewed.

Questioned by officers, he denied allegations that were put to him, insisting any physical contact was simply to console his victim.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said Masterman had secured alternative employment as a labourer since the offending took place.

His employment, he said, followed a period when he was not working.

Mr Allan said Masterman was complying with a community payback order.

As far as Im aware hes not breached any of the bail conditions, and he has been on bail since last year for the matters which he is in court today.

But Sheriff Cruickshank was not convinced.

He called for a social work report and restriction of liberty assessment to be compiled.

The sheriff told Masterman: Given the nature of the offences I have to indicate that you are subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act.

I have formed the view that it is appropriate, at this juncture, to revoke bail, and you will be remanded in custody.

Masterman will appear for sentence on 30th March.

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A THIRTY five year old mechanic from Sandwick has been ordered to carry out 220 hours of unpaid work after admitting possession indecent photos and videos of children.

Erik Stove, of Setter, had previously pleaded guilty to possessing and taking or permitting to be taken indecent photographs of children between 23 August 2014 and 8 March last year.

Lerwick Sheriff Court had previously heard that Stove had three still images and 11 videos on his mobile phone, several of which fell into the most serious category A.

Defence agent Gregor Kelly said a social work report had been full and helpful, showing that, while his wife had temporarily absented herself from the marital home, she had now returned and was supportive.

He said Stove who told police when he was arrested I know theres stuff on my phone thats borderline and I wish to f**k I didnt have it was genuinely remorseful and ashamed of his actions.

Kelly said his client was in many ways relieved to have been caught as it had forced him to address a pornography problem that left him locked in a prison of addiction.

He had been sent two videos involving moving images of children in 2014 and, during the Covid-19 lockdown, had gone on a dark pathway where idle hands precipitated a spectacular further fall from grace.

In the past year he has done much to rid himself of this addiction and is thought of highly by his peers, Kelly added.

Sheriff Cruickshank noted that the offending was unusual in that it took place over a lengthy period but only a small number of images were involved.

He handed Stove a community payback order under supervision for 18 months, during which time he will also be subject to notification requirements under sexual offences legislation.

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A 73-year-old man who photographed a teenage girls bottom and followed her around Tesco has been given a 12-month supervision order.

Brian Laing appeared for sentencing at Lerwick Sheriff Court today (Wednesday) having pleaded guilty to behaving in a threatening and abusive manner at an earlier hearing.

Laing had photographed the 16-year-old girl in Tesco, Lerwick, on 21st November. He then followed the girl and her 72-year-old grandmother around the store while persistently staring at them.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank found there had been a significant sexual aspect to Laings offence. He therefore subjected Laing, of Staneyhill, Lerwick, to sex offender notification requirements for the length of the supervision order.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said a report prepared for the sentencing showed Laing had made a full and frank admission.

Mr Allan said a supervision order would benefit his client.

Theres going to be some difficult work that he has to deal with, he added.

There are a number of deep-seated issues that he would need to explore.

At the earlier hearing, procurator fiscal Duncan MacKenzie told the court the incident could be clearly seen on the stores CCTV footage.

Mr Allan previously said his client had suffered six heart attacks and the incident happened before he visited an Aberdeen hospital. He said Laing was on a lot of medication and had no memory of following the girl or taking the image.

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A disturbed pervert searched unrelentingly for images of children who had been kidnapped, tied up and sexually abused, a court heard.

Henry Hunter, 34, admitted possessing indecent photos of children at Lerwick Sheriff Court today (Wednesday).

Procurator fiscal Duncan MacKenzie told the court more than 1,200 of the most serious category A images had been found on Hunters mobile phone and computer.

Mr MacKenzie said it was clear Hunter, of Hoofields, Lerwick, had a particular predisposition for children who had been tied up.

The court heard he used search terms such as kidnapped little girl.

Images found on his devices featured children aged between two and 16, many of them bound and gagged with materials such as ropes, chains or dog collars.

The children were forced to have sex with adults or each other, the court was told.

Mr MacKenzie said Hunters search history revealed a disturbed mind. He was searching the internet with unrelenting regularity for material to satisfy his particular proclivities.

He said the images he searched for involved sadistic, sexual material of young children who had been kidnapped, bound and gagged.

Hunters chat room comments also showed extensive participation in what Mr MacKenzie described as seriously deviant conversations.

When asked in one chatroom what would make the perfect picture Hunter responded it would be a girl who had been hog-tied.

Mr MacKenzie told the court Hunter had been arrested after police, acting on intelligence he had child sex abuse material, obtained a warrant to search his Lerwick flat on 27th July last year.

Officers seized three of his devices a mobile phone, computer tower and external hard drive. Initial searches uncovered a significant number of images.

Hunter was arrested and interviewed by police and made a full admission.

He told officers how he had downloaded images from a number of websites, mostly registered in foreign countries.

Mr MacKenzie said Hunter admitted to police his behaviour had been going on for a number of years and had spiralled out of control.

Hunter admitted masturbating when viewing the material.

A full forensic search of his devices uncovered even more images, some of which were particularly concerning, and dated back as far as June 2005.

He visited one website, notorious among those investigating child pornography crimes, more than 5,000 times on his mobile phone alone.

Most visits were carried out between April and July last year but it appeared he had been accessing it since 2015.

Searches continued right up until when the police search warrant was executed.

As well as illegal images, police also found more than 4,000 borderline images and more than 5,000 animated drawings described as photo realistic which depicted children engaging in various forms of sexual activity.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said Hunter had co-operated with police from the start and was very much aware of the seriousness of these offences.

Mr Allan said there were issues that will need to be explored with his doctor in regard to his mental health.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank adjourned the case until 16th March for the preparation of criminal justice social worker reports and a restriction of liberty assessment.

Hunter has been subjected to sex offender notification requirements for a length of time to be determined at sentencing.

Sheriff Cruickshank granted an application to forfeit his devices.

Bail has been continued.

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A TWENTY nine year old man who took video footage of himself viewing child pornography on his computer has had sentence deferred for a criminal justice report.

Nathan Bryant, of Lerwicks Burnside, admitted taking or permitting to be taken indecent photographs of children at his home address between June 2014 and September 2020.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie told Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday that cyber crime analysis had uncovered several images and videos on two devices.

One seven-minute video had been taken using screen recording software and showed Bryant accessing a large number of indecent images of children being abused.

The video he made fell under category A images depicting penetrative sexual activity involving minors. One category B image, depicting non-penetrative sexual activity, and several category C images, depicting erotic posing, were also discovered.

Some of the children appeared to be only one or two years old, the fiscal added.

Mackenzie said it was clear from the video that Bryant was proactively seeking the material, contrary to a bizarre explanation that he had granted others access to view his computer remotely and initially maintained he had no interest in accessing material of such a nature.

When he was arrested, Bryant had also claimed to police that he had accessed the websites inadvertently and his computer had automatically downloaded some images.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said his client was aware of the consequences of the offence he had pleaded guilty to.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank granted a crown motion for forfeiture of the devices and continued Bryants bail while reports are prepared.

He also made Bryant subject to notification requirements under sexual offences legislation and deferred sentence until 7 March.

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Kevin Manson, 36, of Sandveien, previously pleaded guilty to possessing the images at an address on the towns Robertson Crescent between 11 June and 30 October 2020.

Lerwick Sheriff Court previously heard that examination of a mobile phone and a memory card had uncovered four category C images, at the lower end of the classification scale.

The images related to children aged between eight and 13.

Defence agent Martin Morrow told Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday that a social work report prepared for sentencing was very favourable and that Manson was regarded as low risk.

The solicitor said his client was keen to put something back into the community.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank gave Manson 100 hours of unpaid work to complete alongside six months of supervision, as an alternative to custody.

He was placed on the sex offenders register for six months, while Sheriff Cruickshank granted a crown request to forfeit Mansons phone.

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A Shetland school teacher has been sentenced after being found guilty of engaging in sexual activity with two pupils.

Kieran Malcolmson was convicted of two charges following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court last month. He has been jailed for 15 months.

A remote jury found the 36-year-old guilty by majority of being in a position of trust as a schoolteacher and engaging in sexual activity other than sexual intercourse with or directed towards a pupil in 2009.

He kissed and engaged in sexual activity with the girl while he was employed as a teacher at a school in Shetland.

Malcolmson was also found guilty by majority of a similar offence of engaging in sexual activity with or directed towards another pupil at a school in 2018.

He kissed the girl on the mouth and repeatedly asked her to accompany him to a dark and secluded area.

Following the outcome of the trial, sentence was deferred on Malcolmson, of Sandwick, Shetland, for reports.

On Friday, 18th June he appeared back in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court to learn his fate.

Defence agent John Keenan invited the sheriff to impose a community order rather than jail.

He said the convictions had had real consequences for him, adding: Since the events in the most recent charge came to light, he was immediately suspended from work and was suspended for about two-and-a-half years before matters concluded following the trial.

At the beginning of this month he was dismissed from his employment and will not be able to resume work in that field.

Regarding the offences themselves, Mr Keenan went on: These are not situations where there is an element of grooming in the build-up to the offences.

On the contrary, these appear to have been matters that occurred really fairly randomly on an impulsive basis.

Mr Keenan said Malcolmson, who continues to deny the offences, had been an active member of the community, coaching a football team and also sitting on a community council.

He added: Aside from these offences, otherwise hes led a useful and productive life which has really, in some ways, been ruined by his actions.

Sheriff Philip Mann told the court: This case involves a serious breach of trust.

Despite your good character and the high price you have paid, I have come to the conclusion only a custodial sentence is appropriate.

Malcolmson was jailed for 15 months and made subject to the notification requirements of the Sexual Offences Act for a decade.

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An utterly depraved predator who installed a secret bathroom camera to spy on young girls in Shetland has been jailed for almost three years.

John Rankins voyeurism went undiscovered for close to a decade until he was caught with thousands of indecent images of children during a police raid last year.

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A MAN who accessed 30 indecent photographs of children has avoided a prison sentence and instead been placed under supervision for three years.

Marcus Marriott, 42, of Dunrossness, committed the offence on or between 12 September and 8 December last year at an address in Brae.

At Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday for sentencing, defence agent Tommy Allan said his client viewed his behaviour as an addiction.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said the offence involved 30 thumbnail images, of which seven were deemed to be category A in severity, 14 category B and nine category C.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said the offending took place at a time when his client was suffering in his personal life.

He views this as an addiction and this is a lapse, he said.

Since that time hes sought help to address the problem.

Allan said it was clearly a serious matter but said Marriott made no secret of his problem and was motivated to change.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank said balancing all the factors including the extent of the offence and what was said in mitigation he felt that prison was not the only option.

I consider that theres a direct alternative to a custodial sentence and that is by imposing a community payback order, he said.

In addition to the three years of supervision, Marriott was given 200 hours of unpaid work to complete.

He was made to undergo the Moving Forward: Making Changes programme, and was placed on the sex offenders register for three years.

Sheriff Cruickshank also granted forfeiture of the device involved in the offence.

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A man has been placed on the sex offenders register for filming a child on a concealed mobile phone.

David Martin Grogan, of Ladies Drive, Lerwick, admitted four sexual offences charges at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday.

The 48-year-old had been charged with voyeurism, including recording the child without their knowledge on the concealed mobile in June 2019, and taking indecent photographs in June and November 2019.

Grogan was also charged with using a concealed mobile to record the child on 5th September 2019 and on 20th November 2019.

Grogan was placed on the sexual offenders register. He had his case adjourned until the 12th August for the preparation of reports and a restriction of liberty assessment.

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A MAN has received a sentence of 180 hours of unpaid work for attempting to groom a 15-year-old girl who was in care.

Part of Ellis Birnies sentence was also for threatening a woman with a knife and possessing a knife or multitool in a public place.

The 25-year-old, of Sandveien, was said to have a number of complex needs by defence agent Tommy Allan in Lerwick Sheriff Court yesterday.

Birnie admitted making indecent video communications with the girl between 15 August and 4 September last year and with trying to arrange a meeting with her with a view to having sex.

He also admitted brandishing a knife at a woman and threatening to stab her partner on 31 January, whilst having been bailed on 15 January.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank sentenced Birnie to two years supervision with 80 hours community payback for the grooming offence and 100 hours for threatening and abusive behaviour, as an alternative to custody. He was put on the sex offenders register at an earlier hearing.

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2019

A MAN has been sent to prison for 15 months after being found guilty of stalking a girl aged under 18 following a jury trial at Lerwick Sheriff Court.

John Harding, whose address was given as Grampian Prison, was also given a seven-year non-harassment order after the jury reached their decision on Wednesday following a two-day trial.

The 46-year-old was found guilty of engaging in a course of conduct on or between 22 April and 16 August at various locations in Shetland which caused the female fear or alarm.

Harding was found guilty of repeatedly attempting to contact her, establishing her place of residence and attend there uninvited, repeatedly presenting her with unwanted gifts and repeatedly sending her social media messages.

He also hugged her and repeatedly kissed her on the head, and repeatedly sent her letters.

Hardings prison sentence was backdated to 3 May when he was first remanded in custody on the matter.

2004

John Harding, 30, drilled holes in the walls of the girls home to watch her undress and also while she showered.

The High Court in Aberdeen heard Hardings obsession culminated in him luring the girl, now aged 17, from her work with the promise of a driving lesson.

He took the terrified teenager to a remote caravan on Shetland where he told her he wanted to "set her free" and that it was his dream to "do things with her".

The girl, who cannot be named, eventually escaped and found refuge in a nearby house. Harding had spied on her since she was nine.

Yesterday he admitted a charge of breach of the peace between January 1996 and September 2003 and detaining the girl against her will also in September last year.

Lord Abernethy deferred sentence on Harding, whose address was given as St Fitticks House, Crombie Road, Aberdeen, for background reports.

Advocate-depute Mark Stewart, prosecuting, told the court that on the evening of September 21, Harding collected the girl from work for her lesson, taking her to an industrial estate because of her lack of confidence behind the wheel.

He ignored her pleas to take her home, telling her they needed to go somewhere quiet.

Mr Stewart said: "The complainer was becoming unsettled and scared, telling the accused that she wished to go. The accused ignored these wishes.

"He started to tell the complainer that he had been thinking thoughts about her which he ought not to be thinking."

The girl became frightened and got out of the car to run away, but Harding persuaded her to get back in with a lie that he would take her home.

When he began the 30-mile drive out to a dilapidated caravan on an area of remote croft land, he threw her mobile phone out of the car when she used it to try and call for help.

Mr Stewart said: "The complainer became so terrified by that, that she attempted to open the door of the moving car and get out. But she was seized by the accused who took hold of her arm and held on to her shouting at her that she should go to sleep."

Despite the girl begging to be taken home, Harding, who formerly worked for a taxi company, took her inside the caravan where he began to cuddle and kiss her on the forehead.

Mr Stewart told the court: "He continued by making statements to her such as he would set her free and that he would show her love.

"He explained that it was his dream that he would do things with her."

Mr Stewart said the girl became convinced Harding wished to have sex with her and that she experienced a feeling of "abject terror".

When he unfastened his trousers, she ran from the caravan, making a desperate dash over the rough terrain.

Mr Stewart said she reached a house where a resident described her as "shaking uncontrollably, obviously terrified and pleading for help".

When Harding was later arrested, he admitted he had "developed an obsession" for her when she had lived in two houses in Lerwick and that he had "derived sexual gratification" from seeing her in the bathroom, Mr Stewart said.

Harding, who was released on bail, is to be sentenced at the High Court in Glasgow on July 27.

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A MAN who downloaded over 150 indecent images and videos of children including while he was on bail has been sent to prison for over two years.

Andrew Goodlad, whose address was given as Grampian Prison, previously pleaded guilty at Lerwick Sheriff Court to the charge which took place on or between 25 September 2017 and 12 July this year at an address in Lerwick while he was on bail.

The court previously heard that the initial offence came to light when police asked to see the 25-year-olds mobile phone to timestamp an unrelated incident which they were taking a statement for.

Around 90 indecent videos in total were found on devices owned by Goodlad, with 43 of them in the most serious A category.

A total of 73 indecent images were discovered, as well as 85 thumbnail previews of images.

Goodlad had also admitted breaching bail conditions on a number of occasions between April and July this year.

Defence agent Tommy Allan said at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday that it was patently obvious that work needed to be done with Goodlad over how he came to commit the offence.

But he suggested Goodlad who appeared from custody did not have a full insight into the offence due to his development in early life.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank told Goodlad: Im not sure that you quite appreciate how serious these offences are.

He added that in a social work report Goodlad said he accessed the content due to boredom and stupidity.

The sheriff also reiterated that the 25-year-old continued to download images after his first court appearance.

Sheriff Cruickshank gave Goodlad an extended sentence of 41 months for the indecent images charge, which consisted of 17 months in custody and a further 24 months on licence.

But he was given a further ten months in custody for his repeated bail breaches bringing his total prison sentence to 27 months, backdated to when he first entered custody in July.

Goodlad was also placed on the sex offenders register.

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A MAN from Lerwick who downloaded over 21,000 indecent photos and videos of children has been sent to prison for 20 months.

Ross Robert Morrison, of Burgh Road, previously pleaded guilty at Lerwick Sheriff Court to taking or permitting to be taken the images at an address in the town on or between 3 December 2016 and 16 January 2018.

The court previously heard that the images recovered from Morrisons laptop were both described as accessible and inaccessible, with the latter meaning they had been deleted.

The images and videos covered the three classifications A, B and C, with A being the most serious.

Most of the images and videos were category C, with over 21,000 inaccessible images found in that classification as well as nearly 300 inaccessible videos.

There were no accessible images or videos in category A or B, but there were 15 inaccessible category A pictures and three videos.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie previously told the court that all of the images and videos found contained girls, with some as young as five years old, adding that Morrison had frequented a Russian image website.

At Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday, defence agent Tommy Allan said his 46 year old client had struggled to cope with the fact that he had committed the offence.

The solicitor added that Morrison could not explain how he got into the situation where he was viewing the images.

While he said he did not want to detract from the seriousness of the crime, Allan noted that the majority of the images were classified as the lower category C.

Sheriff Ian Cruickshank said he struggled to understand how someone could view that amount of images and videos without a purpose.

He noted that guidelines meant that the classification of the images had to be taken into account when sentencing.

The sheriff ruled there was no alternative to custody and he gave Morrison an extended sentence of 44 months.

This comprised of a 20-month prison sentence followed by a 24-month period out on licence. Morrison was also placed on the sex offenders register.