A man wrongly branded a paedophile by TikTok vigilantes is living in fear in a safe house after a mob attacked his Dumbarton home.
More than 300 people circled David McLean’s Brucehill flat on the evening of Tuesday February 28, throwing bricks and fireworks as he and partner Shona hid inside.
A social media group incorrectly accused him of being a convicted sex beast rallying people online who travelled to his home.
Shona told us how 30 people gathered outside her living room window grew to 300 in minutes as the couple cowered behind furniture from bricks and fireworks.
The incident, which prompted the police to hit back at those who acted on “inaccurate information”, was the first in a string of incidents across the area, with homes in Bonhill and Strathleven also targeted.
And now the couple, who had lived in Brucehill for 14 months, have opened up about their terrifying ordeal - which has left both requiring mental health support to deal with the trauma.
They have also been unable to return to Dumbarton to collect their belongings.
David’s partner Shona McLean told the Lennox: “David and his friend had literally been back five minutes when it started. They were trying to kick our door in shouting that David was a dirty beast and to get out.
“I immediately called 999 as around 30 people were outside the living room window and in the garden.
“Within 20 minutes several of the police had arrived and told us they were going to remove us for our safety and to pack a bag immediately.
“I looked out the window for two seconds and the crowd had grown tenfold.
“I hid at the back of the living room terrified in case a brick or firework hit any of us.
“There was so much danger I feared going to the windows or even the door to let police In the house.
“We packed our bags and waited in the hall to be removed.
“We waited for 90 minutes or so whilst the riot police arrived and they formulated a plan to extract us safely.
“It felt like forever.”
Police eventually managed to help Shona and David from the property after cutting down a back garden fence.
Riot cops formed a barricade to protect them from missiles as they sprinted to safety.
Shona explained: “Their first plan had to be scrapped as the crowd was so big.
“After what felt like a lifetime the back fence in our garden had been cut open and a riot van parked there for our departure.
“The police came in, it felt like a military operation.
“The crowd saw us being taken out the back and started running to get to the back fence before us.
“David and I are both fortunate that we managed to escape.
“David is pretty fit and able bodied whereas I struggled to run down the hill away from the house because of previous injuries I’ve had.
“I was terrified that I’d be caught up in the crowd coming down to the back of the house trying to attack us.
“We dived in the van and were taken to several police stations before finally being taken to a safe space.”
The couple have since been moved to an undisclosed location and their Brucehill home has been boarded up.
Shona said she and her husband are petrified every day that they will be found and targeted again.
She added: “After several moves following the incident we still don’t have a place to call home and have very little resources.
“All our belongings are still in Dumbarton.
“Both David and I have been referred on for mental health support following this outrageous behaviour.
“Neither of us feel like we can leave the house or return to the Dumbarton area.
“Before this happened we were planning our wedding, but since this started I’ve been thinking more about planning our funerals.
“We don’t go back to Dumbarton because we’ve been advised not to.
“We’re petrified to leave the house despite now being so far away from Dumbarton that nobody can reach us.
“But the scary thing is that someone could’ve seen that Facebook post.
“You don’t know who has seen that false information and who doesn’t know the truth.
“There’s constant paranoia and anxiety.”
Police documents confirm David has never been charged with any sexual offence and that he is not on the sex offenders register.
The couple think the false information circulated online in 2018 after a malicious rumour was started.
The same false online accusation circulated earlier this year among locals in Dumbarton.
Shona is now calling on vigilante groups to change their ways, and on social media giants to do more to prevent future situations.
She continued: “This post on social media has been reported over 100 times by David, myself, friends and family.
“Yet it wasn’t checked.
“The social media companies need to change the way in which things are acted on when they are reported.
“This click and report system where nothing is done is not the way.
“We talk about child online safety a lot, but we also need adult online safety.
“It could’ve happened to anyone. “It just happened to be us.
“My message to the vigilantes is that I understand what they are trying to do in cleansing our community of convicted paedophiles.
“What you are failing to see is how much damage you can cause.
“It’s not just David and I who have been affected by this, it’s David’s whole family.
“All our friends.
“I’ve had my friendships questioned.
“My plea to these groups is, if you want to carry on getting paedophiles out of our communities then report it using the correct procedures.
“Turning up at someone’s door, hammering at it and demanding that they leave their house is unacceptable.
“If you think that someone is a paedophile then phone the police.
“If you are a parent or carer then you have a right to find out if there is one in your area.”
Shona added that innocent people are at risk and said: “Anyone could post about your family and you could have 300 people turn up at your door.”
A total of 10 people were charged with mobbing and rioting in relation to the Brucehill clashes after police raided properties in Clydebank, Glasgow, Port Glasgow, Wishaw and Livingston.
They appeared in Dumbarton Sheriff Court in March.
