A Moray mum helped lock up her disabled son’s rapist after stumbling onto sick messages he secretly sent to the “pure soul” on his mobile.
Former Keith shop owner John Jessiman Barclay, who previously worked in social care, groomed his way into the lives of three vulnerable young males.
They were left emotionally scarred after he sexually abused them for years, starting more than a decade ago when he first preyed on a 14-year-old boy in Fochabers.
The 63-year-old monster was jailed for seven years and two months at the High Court in Edinburgh after he pled guilty to four charges of sexual offences including raping a young man with a mental disorder.
His “broken” mum, who revealed she’ll never trust anyone ever again, told The Press and Journal that her son, now in his 30s, can no longer sleep without medication.
‘Broken’ mum’s heartache after son’s rapist ‘changed’ him
“He’s a changed boy since this happened,” the 52-year-old from Elgin said, adding: “He wants to be with his mum all the time and is wary about everybody around him.
“He hasn’t been sleeping properly without tablets and I’ve had to be on anti-anxiety medicine. This has broken us. It’s a nightmare that will never go away.”
Barclay was involved in various disability support groups and was known for volunteering in the community.
He also ran the now-closed Aladdin’s Cave shop on Mid Street in Keith, selling handmade goodies and gifts to fundraise for good causes.
Previously, he was employed in positions of trust for Moray Council, beginning with an Elgin-based job involving social work in 1994, and then as a Community Care Officer in Buckie from June 2005, according to the sex offender’s Facebook profile.
However, the crimes that landed him in the dock were committed after he left the supervision of Health and Social Care Moray.
A spokeswoman told The P&J: “Moray Council can confirm that the individual concerned has not been employed by the council since 2010.”
But, the official failed to answer whether authorities had launched an investigation into their former employee’s potential conduct over the years.
“I thought that he was a good person because he used to have a job in social work and was trusted to care for people in the community,” the mum who spoke out told this newspaper.
“I feel like he groomed me too. I’ll never totally trust anybody ever again.”
Barclay pled guilty to four charges involving three vulnerable victims
She revealed that Barclay had warned her son not to tell anyone about his indecent messages sent to the vulnerable young man between January 1 2019 and 14 April 2021.
Barclay threatened that it would be his victim, who was mentally incapable of consenting to sex, who would get into trouble if anyone learned of their activities.
He repeatedly uttered comments of a sexual nature and asked for him to meet with another male for sexual activity.
Between January 1 2019 and March 31 2020 Barclay, while acting with another male, sexually assaulted the young man – then in his 20s – by telling the victim to remove his clothing, touching him, watching him with the other male, and raping him orally to his injury.
Barclay uttered comments and sing song lyrics of a sexual nature to another victim, now in his 20s, when he was 14 and 15 years old between May 1 2012 and April 2013 in Fochabers.
The court heard it was done “for the purposes of obtaining sexual gratification or of humiliating, distressing, or alarming him”.
In Elgin, Moray or elsewhere between January and December 31 2014, he called another male, whose age was not specified in court papers, on Facebook Messenger to show him footage of himself carrying out a solo sex act.
Mobile messages blew Barclay’s cover as a Good Samaritan, unmasking him as a beast
Barclay’s cover as a Good Samaritan was finally blown when his rape victim’s mum became suspicious of her son’s behaviour.
She explained: “He had a carrier bag in his hand that he wouldn’t put down. I asked, ‘What’s in there?’ and he sheepishly replied, ‘Nothing, nothing, mum’.
“I looked inside and found a condom. Then, after reading messages on his mobile, I discovered that Barclay had given him the condoms and was sending messages about having sex with him, asking if he’d washed himself.”
The horrified Elgin woman immediately reported her disturbing discovery to the police.
“They told me that there were already another two investigations of Barclay concerning allegations he behaved inappropriately years ago, but, because there wasn’t enough evidence, they were kept on file.
“When my son accused him of similar things, the police built a proper case to take to court.”
His mum spoke of the heartbreaking moment she had to explain to her terrified son that he was the victim of a manipulative predator.
“My son thought he was in trouble with the police. He kept shouting, ‘I’m sorry mum, I’m sorry mum’. I had to reassure him that it wasn’t actually him who had been bad.”
Mum who feels ‘guilt’ at letting Barclay into her family’s lives hopes he ‘rots in jail’
Barclay, of Cawdor Avenue in Elgin, appeared before a judge for sentencing in the Scottish capital last Monday.
His rape victim’s mum was present in court during the hearing and later said she felt “depressed” by the outcome of the case.
Barclay had faced spending the next eight years of his life in jail but was instead imprisoned for seven years and two months, backdated from February 2 2024.
“I feel p***** off about him being rewarded for finally admitting to what he did by pleading guilty and getting a discount on his prison sentence.
“There’ve been times that I’ve felt I just can’t go on because I feel so much guilt about trusting Barclay.
“He wasn’t in the court when he was sentenced. He appeared over a video link but was smirking. I hope that he rots in jail,” the tearful Elgin mum said.
Her son’s attacker also received a non-harassment order banning him from ever having further contact with the young man as he tries to recover from his ordeal.
Barclay will also remain on the sex offenders register for life.
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