A man detained by police, investigating a sex attack in Union Terrace Gardens, has been released from custody.
The 26-year-old, who has not been named, was due to appear at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday, charged with carrying out a sexual assault on a woman in the Victorian park on Sunday morning.
However, prosecutors confirmed last night they had released the suspect, but said the case against him remained live.
A spokeswoman for the Crown Office said: “The procurator fiscal at Aberdeen received a report concerning a 26-year-old man in connection with an alleged incident on March 27.
“The accused did not appear in court and was liberated from custody. The case against him remains live and under consideration.”
Throughout the day on Sunday, police could be seen guarding the four entrances to the gardens as specialist investigators, wearing white forensic suits, examined a taped-off area.
The searches seemed to be concentrating on one of the arches below Union Terrace.
The alleged incident happened almost eight weeks after a 21-year-old woman was raped in the park.
No one has yet been arrested in connection with the attack on January 28, which is not believed to be linked to the weekend one.
Following the latest incident, local politicians called for the gardens to be closed at night during the hours of darkness.
SNP group leader on the local authority Stephen Flynn said “urgent action” was needed to ensure public safety.
He also wrote to Aberdeen City Council’s chief executive, Angela Scott, asking for a “full and immediate review” of how safety could be improved.
But Aberdeen City Council leader Jenny Laing said the local authority should not have a “knee-jerk” reaction to the “alleged” attacks.
She added that money had been earmarked to make improvements to the gardens, but added this would be done as part of the city centre masterplan.
Councillor Bill Cormie, whose ward covers Union Terrace Gardens, said it was not practical to wait for the masterplan to come through as it could take years to implement the proposals.
He said that when the gardens were previously locked at night, there were no reports of attacks being carried out in the park.
