One of the UK’s leading child protection experts has dismissed concerns that dangerous sex offenders are leaving a north-east prison and setting up home in the area.
Aberdeenshire councillor Sam Coull has spent more than two years trying to gather evidence on the possible risk that Peterhead Prison poses to the surrounding community.
He wants to find out how many sex crimes in Aberdeenshire were committed by people released from the jail, which is a dedicated unit for convicted rapists and child molesters.
However, renowned child protection worker David Niven, who has worked with several police forces, said sex offenders will not be looking for homes in Buchan after leaving the jail.
“I think it is very unlikely that a sex offender would leave Peterhead Prison and set up home in the area – because they know what would happen if they are recognised,” he said.
“I have done work with Scotland Yard and they liken sex offenders to terrorist cells because of the intelligence they use to carry out their crimes.
“I think it is more likely that these people will disappear to England where nobody will have heard of them at all.”
Veteran Liberal Democrat councillor Mr Coull, who represents Peterhead South, firmly believes that freed inmates are setting up home in the Buchan area.
Over the past two years, he has contacted various authorities with freedom of information requests.
He has asked the justice department of the Scottish Government, the Crown Office, the procurator fiscal service and Grampian Police how many inmates at Peterhead had, after serving their time, reoffended in Aberdeenshire and gone on to serve another sentence at the Buchan jail.
Last month he finally received a reply from Scottish Prison Service staff based in Peterhead.
They revealed: “From April 1, 2007, there have been 97 offenders due for liberation. However, only prisoners from the Peterhead area are liberated from the prison, all other offenders are transferred to their local establishments prior to release.
“From April 1, 2007, there has only been one offender liberated into the Aberdeenshire area. To date, this offender has not returned to HM Prison Peterhead to serve another sentence.”
Mr Coull feels he may have hit a brick wall but is refusing to drop his campaign.
In September, an attempt by the Liberal Democrat justice spokeswoman Margaret Smith to get similar information also failed.
Her parliamentary questions on the matter were rebuffed by Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, who said the Scottish Government did not hold the information. It is known nearly 800 sex crimes have been investigated by police in Aberdeenshire over the last three years, with almost 40% of them unsolved.