A DECISION by prison chiefs not to investigate the number of released sex offenders living in the north-east has been backed by Scotland’s freedom of information watchdog.
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) was asked how many freed Peterhead Prison inmates were back behind bars after committing crimes in the north-east.
The question was part of a two-year campaign by Aberdeenshire councillor Sam Coull, who wants to know how many rapists and child molesters have settled in the Buchan area.
The prison service said it would be too costly to fully investigate the query, more than £600 in total, although it did reveal that only one offender had been released into Aberdeenshire since April last year and he had not returned to jail.
Mr Coull made a formal complaint to Information Commissioner Kevin Dunion and asked him to investigate why, after two years and freedom of information requests to various authorities, he had yet to receive a satisfactory response.
Now Mr Coull has been told an investigation is under way, but Mr Dunion is likely to accept the prison service’s view that it would be too expensive to look into the query fully.
The Peterhead South councillor has been asked to consider withdrawing his application to the commissioner.
In an attempt to settle the dispute, it has been proposed that the SPS offers statistics on inmates who have served multiple-sentences at Peterhead.
Mr Coull said he was not interested in resolving the matter in this way.
“The need for this information is in the public interest, so that the full risk from repeat offenders released into residency in Aberdeenshire can be fully assessed,” he said.
“It seems to me that the authorities want to be able to hide the degree of risk to the community under the guise of some concern for costs and fob me off with whatever they see fit.”
Mr Coull was a vocal supporter of plans to close Peterhead Prison when it was threatened with the axe nine years ago. As part of his campaign, he has requested information from, among others, Grampian Police, the Crown Office and management at Peterhead Prison.
It is known that nearly 800 sex crimes have been investigated by police in Aberdeenshire over the last three years, with almost 40% unsolved.