Former Police Scotland Officer Convicted of Series of Rapes and Sexual Assaults Spanning 17 Years

A former Police Scotland officer has been convicted at the High Court in Glasgow following a prolonged campaign of sexual violence and abuse that spanned nearly two decades. Campbell Petrie, aged 50, was found guilty of a wide-ranging catalogue of serious sexual offences, including two counts of rape, committed over a 17-year timeframe against his victims.

The jury returned guilty verdicts on nine distinct charges that detailed criminal actions carried out between 2006 and 2023. In addition to the rape convictions, the charges sustained against Petrie encompassed indecent assault, assault with intent to rape, and assault to injury and danger of life, illustrating the severe and dangerous nature of his sustained offending pattern.

Throughout the entire 17-year period during which these offences were committed, Petrie was an actively serving police officer within Scotland's national force. Evidence presented in court established that the crimes themselves took place while he was off duty, utilizing his personal time away from official policing responsibilities to commit the unlawful acts.

Police Scotland confirmed the precise operational timeline regarding the disciplinary and criminal actions taken against Petrie. The force noted that he was formally arrested, charged with the offences, and placed under suspension from all policing duties in December 2023. Following that suspension, Petrie formally retired from the police service in December of last year.

Following the conclusion of the trial proceedings and the announcement of the guilty verdicts, Petrie was remanded in custody by the court. The presiding judge deferred the matter for sentencing until next month, at which time the former officer will appear in court once again to receive his official punishment.

Following the outcome at the High Court in Glasgow, senior figures within Police Scotland addressed the trial results and commended the individuals who came forward to report the crimes. Detective Superintendent Adam Brown, from the force’s public protection unit, publicly acknowledged the profound impact of the case and praised the survivors.

Det Supt Brown stated that the thoughts of Police Scotland are very much with the victims involved in the case. He commended their strength and resolve in reporting the traumatic crimes to authorities, emphasizing that their courage was the determining factor in bringing Campbell Petrie to justice after years of abuse.

The senior detective also highlighted the unique and significant difficulties individuals face when deciding to report incidents of sexual violence. Det Supt Brown acknowledged that reporting such offences can be especially challenging and intimidating for victims, particularly when the perpetrator responsible for the abuse is an active police officer sworn to uphold the law.

In response to concerns surrounding police misconduct, Det Supt Brown sought to reassure the general public about the force's commitment to investigating internal wrongdoing. He stated that Police Scotland remains determined to identify and investigate any officers suspected of criminal behavior, regardless of whether they are current serving personnel or individuals who have already retired from the organization.

Det Supt Brown further made clear that the police service will thoroughly examine allegations whether the misconduct took place while officers were on duty or, as was demonstrated in Petrie's case, when they were acting off duty. He reiterated that Petrie will now face the full consequences of his criminal actions through the justice system.

The conviction of Petrie follows another high-profile case that recently brought intense focus onto the behavior of officers within Police Scotland. Earlier this year, a BBC Disclosure documentary investigation revealed that another former officer, PC Alan Greer, was a violent rapist who carried out a multitude of predatory attacks against women over a span of at least 14 years.

The BBC Disclosure inquiry revealed that Greer’s first known victim was assaulted inside her own home in Glasgow in 2012. The woman was attacked and raped after she had reached out to the police for assistance to report that she had been the victim of a separate crime, only to be targeted by the responding officer.

Further details uncovered about Greer indicated that he used hundreds of prostitutes across the duration of his policing career. Police Scotland eventually identified 15 individual victims harmed by Greer, but investigators and officials have expressed ongoing fears that the actual total of women abused by him is far greater than the confirmed cases.

The circumstances surrounding Greer also raised severe questions regarding the robustness of police vetting procedures. Greer had successfully passed the vetting checks required to join Police Scotland despite having two previous reports documenting criminal behaviour against women already present on his background record.

Greer’s case ended without a trial, as he took his own life in May. His suicide occurred just days after police investigators executed an official raid on his residence as part of the broader active investigation into his numerous violent and sexual offences.

The guilty verdicts against Petrie mark another significant development in efforts to address serious offending by law enforcement personnel. With Petrie currently held in custody awaiting his sentencing hearing next month, the case reinforces ongoing commitments by authorities to hold criminal officers accountable for their actions.