A CHILD abuse ring who preyed on victims in a drugs den have been warned that they face “very substantial” jail terms for “extraordinary depravity”.
Three children were abused in 2012 and 2019 in a Glasgow drugs den where heroin and crack cocaine were used.
Iain Owens, 45; Elaine Lannery, 39; Lesley Williams, 41; Paul Brannan, 41; Scott Forbes, 50; Barry Watson, 47; and John Clark, 47, were convicted of a string of charges including gang rape of a child.
Co-accused Marianne Gallagher, 38, was found guilty of assaulting a child. She was bailed and had her sentence deferred until January 6, 2025.
Four of the accused – Owens, Lannery, Brannan and Williams – were all convicted of attempting to murder a child by pushing her into a microwave and trapping her in other places.
Prosecutors dropped allegations of the use of a Ouija board during the eight-week trial at the High Court in Glasgow, and all the accused were found not guilty of killing dogs.
Three of those on trial: Mark Carr, 49; Richard Gachagan, 46; and Leona Laing, 51, were acquitted of all charges.
Judge Lord Beckett warned the abusers when they faced the court yesterday to expect a “very substantial prison sentence”, for “grave and repeated” crimes.
He said the “common denominator” was the abuse of a “very young child”, which all the defendants except Gallagher were convicted of.
Lord Beckett said: “Some of you have been convicted of sexually abusing three children and some of two children.
“The common denominator was the repeated sexual assault of a very young child, payment was sought and accepted, some of the events were filmed. This extraordinary depravity was repeated on a number of occasions.
“All the sex offences are of extreme gravity and accompanied for some of you by attempted murder.
“I think particularly of the children in this case and those who care or support them.
“The whole community may justifiably feel an urgent need for resolution of this case.
“The court must apply the law. I have thought long and hard about this case.”
He said a risk assessment will be carried out before sentencing to assess if an order for lifelong restriction should be imposed. That monitors high-risk offenders for the rest of their lives if deemed suitable for release from prison after serving a minimum punishment period.
The criteria will look at if the abusers would potentially “seriously endanger the lives or physical or psychological wellbeing of the public at large”.
Lord Beckett added: “It appears to me in the case of each of you may be such there is a likelihood that if at liberty there is a risk you will seriously endanger the lives or physical or psychological wellbeing of the public at large, particularly young children.
“You are not all in the same position. You should understand that each of you faces a very substantial prison sentence.”
Owens and Lannery were convicted of attempted murder and multiple counts of assault, sexual assault, rape and causing a child to ingest drugs and alcohol.
Williams was convicted of attempted murder, assault, rape and supplying drugs, while Brannan was found guilty of attempted murder charge as well as sexual assault, causing children to consume drugs and alcohol, rape and supplying Class-A drugs.
Many of the defendants continued to insist they were innocent with some expecting to be cleared.
Owens continues to maintain his innocence, according to defence advocate Gary Allan KC, who described him as “by no means stupid”, and said he found prison “frightening”.
Forbes believes he will “someday be exonerated”, his lawyer James Wallace told the court, while John Clark “protests his innocence”, Iain McSporran KC told the court.
Watson “maintains his position of denial”, while Williams “maintains her innocence”, the court heard.
Sentencing was adjourned until January 9.
