Seven child abuse ring members jailed and warned they may never be released
Seven child abuse ring members jailed and warned they may never be released
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Seven people convicted of being part of a child abuse ring which plunged to “the depths of human depravity” were sentenced to lifelong restriction orders and warned they may never be released. The two women and five men were all convicted of gang raping a child and abusing other children in a drugs den in Glasgow where heroin and crack cocaine were used, and were given sentences of between 20 years and eight years in jail before they can apply for parole.
Iain Owens, 46; Elaine Lannery, 40; Lesley Williams, 43; Paul Brannan, 42; Scott Forbes, 51; Barry Watson, 48; and John Clark, 48, were convicted in November 2023 following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow. Four of the group: Owens, Lannery, Brannan and Williams, were found guilty of attempting to murder a child by pushing her into a microwave and trapping her in other places.
Sentencing was delayed until 14 months after conviction, while risk assessments were carried out, which judge Lord Beckett had ordered due to the severity of the crimes – involving three children between 2012 and 2019. The trial, which lasted for about eight weeks, heard evidence of systematic child sex abuse, described as “harrowing” by Lord Beckett who said it “plunges to the depths of human depravity”.
All seven were found guilty of taking part in the gang rape of a child, and were each given an order for lifelong restriction, while Lord Beckett said: “What you and the community must understand is you may never be released.”. The orders involve monitoring high-risk offenders for the rest of their lives if they are deemed suitable for release from prison after serving a minimum punishment period.
