Child abuse ring members jailed for terms ranging from 20 to eight years
The seven were part of a gang which was said to have ‘plunged the depths of human depravity’.
Seven people convicted of being part of a Scottish child abuse ring which plunged to “the depths of human depravity” have been jailed for terms ranging from 20 years to eight years.
The two women and five men will all be monitored for life after being convicted of gang raping a child and abusing other children in a drugs den in Glasgow where heroin and crack cocaine were used.
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 while risk assessments were carried out, which judge Lord Beckett had ordered due to the severity of the crimes.
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”.
Sentencing the seven at the High Court in Glasgow on Monday, Lord Beckett said: “This court is used to hearing some of the worst example of human behaviour but such depravity as you demonstrated is beyond my experience. Such extreme abuse seems to be rare.
“The children showed extraordinary fortitude, strength and stamina as investigators struggled to comprehend what you had done to them.
“The children’s exceptional courage and perseverance in the face of threats allowed justice to be done.”
He said the crimes “were about as serious as it’s possible to be”, and praised the actions of a married couple who “provided respite” to the children, and said they were rescued from “desperate darkness of their earlier life”.
He added: “Each of you faces at least one charge of extreme gravity; including very serious and repeated sexual offending against a very young child; which includes inducing a very young child to seriously sex abuse (another victim in the case).”
He described the abuse as “life endangering and in some cases murderous assaults” and said the sentence was “to deter others, and expressing the abhorrence of the community of such atrocious abuse of vulnerable children”.
He added: “I take account of the terrible suffering of the children. The impact is extremely serious and can be expected to be enduring. At the very least you have inflicted extreme damage on their relationships.”
The judge praised victim impact statements from the children, adding of the oldest child: “An impression of innate humanity shines through her words.”
All were given orders for lifelong restriction, which monitor high-risk offenders for the rest of their lives if they are deemed suitable for release from prison after serving a minimum punishment period.
The offences, involving three children, happened between 2012 and 2019.
Owens, Lannery, Brannan, Williams, Forbes, Watson and Clark were found guilty of taking part in the gang rape of a child.
Owens and Lannery were also convicted of multiple counts of assault, sexual assault, rape and causing a child to ingest drugs and alcohol.
Owens and Lannery were jailed for 20 and 17 years respectively, with Lord Beckett telling Owens: “Yours is the worst example of extreme child abuse.”
Brannan was convicted of attempted murder, sexual assault, rape and supplying class A drugs. He was jailed for 15 years.
Williams was convicted of attempted murder, assault, rape and supplying drugs. She was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment.
Forbes was found guilty of rape, while Watson was found guilty of rape and sexual assault, and Clark was found guilty of rape and sexual assault.
Clark was jailed for 10 years, Watson for nine years and six months and Forbes for eight years.
An allegation that the accused used a Ouija board to “call on spirits and demons” causing the child victims to “believe that they could see, hear and communicate with spirits and demons” and making them take part in “witchcraft”, was dropped by prosecutors during the trial.
Co-accused Marianne Gallagher, 40, was found guilty of assaulting a child and was “admonished” when she appeared for sentencing on January 6.
Gallagher was told she would be in “pretty severe trouble” if she committed further offences, when she was spared punishment by Lord Beckett.
