Seven members of Glasgow paedophile gang that ran child abuse ring jailed and may never be released

The group, two women and five men, were convicted of gang-raping a child and abusing others in a drug den where heroin and crack cocaine were used. Sentences range from 20 years to eight years in prison, with parole eligibility only after serving the minimum terms.

The convicted are Iain Owens, 46; Elaine Lannery, 40; Lesley Williams, 43; Paul Brannan, 42; Scott Forbes, 51; Barry Watson, 48; and John Clark, 48. They were found guilty in November 2023 following an eight-week trial at the High Court in Glasgow, with crimes involving three children between 2012 and 2019.

Four of the group, Owens, Lannery, Brannan, and Williams, were also convicted of attempting to murder a child by pushing her into a microwave and trapping her in other dangerous situations.

Sentencing was delayed by 14 months to allow for risk assessments due to the severity of the crimes. Lord Beckett, who presided over the trial, described the abuse as “harrowing” and said: “This court is used to hearing some of the worst examples of human behaviour, but such depravity as you demonstrated is beyond my experience. Such extreme abuse seems to be rare.”

The judge added: “What you and the community must understand is you may never be released. These crimes were about as serious as it’s possible to be.”

Lord Beckett praised the courage of the victims, saying: “The children showed extraordinary fortitude, strength, and stamina as investigators struggled to comprehend what you had done to them. The children’s exceptional courage and perseverance in the face of threats allowed justice to be done.”

He also commended a married couple who provided respite to the children, rescuing them from the “desperate darkness of their earlier life.”

Their convictions and sentences in detail

• Iain Owens: 20 years for 18 charges, including assault, rape, and forcing children to ingest drugs. Lord Beckett called his crimes the “worst example of extreme child abuse” and described them as “humiliating, degrading sexual crimes against incredibly vulnerable children.”
• Elaine Lannery: 17 years for arranging and assisting in the abuse, including encouraging and applauding it. The judge said, “As a woman, your role was to arrange and assist abuse by several men. You encouraged and applauded what happened. Your purpose was to corrupt a very young girl to facilitate sexual abuse. You accepted payment.”
• Lesley Williams: 14 years for attempted murder, assault, rape, and drug supply. The judge noted she “physically assisted several men as you and others encouraged and applauded what was happening.”
• Paul Brannan: 15 years for attempted murder, sexual assault, rape, and supplying class A drugs.
• Barry Watson: Nine years and six months for rape and sexual assault.
• John Clark: 10 years for rape and sexual assault. Clark shouted, “There’s nae evidence, there’s nae evidence at all,” as he was led from the court.
• Scott Forbes: Eight years for rape, with the judge criticising his role in filming the abuse.

Detective Inspector Lesley-Ann McGee said: “I hope today’s outcome can help the young victims in moving forward. This was a long, complex and challenging investigation for a team of officers and staff who had to work through the most harrowing evidence to bring those responsible for these despicable crimes to justice.

“Since the investigation began we’ve worked closely with a range of partners in Social Work, Health, Education, Crown Office and the third-sector to protect and support the victims.

“We remain committed to supporting victims of sexual crime and protecting children from harm and abuse. We will use all available resources to find and arrest the abusers, no matter how much time has passed. I would urge anyone who is a victim of abuse to speak to police in the knowledge you will be listened to, taken seriously and fully supported.”