Domestic abusers jailed for 272 years after taskforce investigations

Police Scotland investigations have resulted in 43 offenders being sentenced to a total of 272 years in prison since 1 April 2023.

The 43 perpetrators were convicted of a total of 364 domestic abuse offences following work by the service’s national Domestic Abuse Taskforce.

Their sentences included non-harassment orders (NHOs) totalling 1119 years, including 21 indefinite NHOs, while four abusers were given orders of lifelong restriction.

A total of 139 victims were identified.

Detective Chief Superintendent Sam Faulds, Head of Public Protection, Police Scotland, said: “These are significant outcomes for victims, the result of that first step taken to tell someone, an officer or a support worker, of the abuse they have suffered.

“Our Domestic Abuse Taskforce takes on the most complex, challenging and sensitive enquiries often involving multiple victims who have suffered years of abuse, whether physical, sexual, emotional and financial.

“We understand how difficult it can be for people to report abuse, to revisit a painful past. It is really important people understand that they are not alone, help is available.

“Society is changing. Domestic abuse in all its forms is now recognised and not ignored. Ultimately, we are working, with partners, to prevent domestic abuse, and to reduce the harm it causes.

“Tackling domestic abuse is a priority for Police Scotland. Every officer is trained to deal with domestic incidents, and to identify the full range of abuse that offenders use to control, coerce and instil fear in victims.

“If you are a victim of domestic abuse, or are concerned that someone you know is a victim, then please report to Police Scotland or through one of our partner agencies. We will take action and we will investigate.”

Officers in Scotland attend nearly 65,000 domestic abuse calls a year, a call every eight minutes on average. Around 42% of these will result in a crime being recorded.

Police Scotland’s Domestic Abuse Taskforce deals with the most complex domestic abuse investigations, often involving long term offending against multiple victims.

According to the latest quarterly performance data (quarter three, April to December 2023), 46,195 domestic incidents were reported to the police and 26,300 crimes were recorded.

Recorded domestic crimes are down 5.1% (1,399 crimes) compared to the same period last year, and down 8.7% (2,511 crimes) compared to the five-year mean.

Reports of domestic incidents had increased by 2.0% (892 incidents) compared to last year.

Of the crimes recorded, 1505 were recorded under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act, a 13.2% increase (175 crimes) on the previous year.

Requests to the Disclosure Scheme for Domestic Abuse in Scotland (DSDAS) increased by 23.5% overall compared to the same period last year.