'Celtic scout' claim coach accused of child sex attacks hunted by police
The suspect told kids in the 1970s he was a scout for Celtic and it's alleged he was friendly with Celtic Boys Club beasts Jim Torbett, 71, and Frank Cairney, 84, who are both now in jail.
A former football coach who claimed to be a scout for
Celtic is wanted by police over claims he carried out a string of child sex attacks.
The ‘scout’, now 75, was the subject of a complaint to police in 2015 from a man now in his 60s. Another man later came forward with more claims of abuse.
The coach is alleged to have
preyed on children in the 60s and 70s.
It is alleged by his accusers that the scout – who was involved in schools and youth football in Renfrewshire – abused boys repeatedly at a house in Paisley and at a property in Argyll and Bute.
One alleged victim has told the
Record that his alleged abuser was friendly with Celtic Boys Club beasts Jim Torbett, 71, and Frank Cairney, 84, who are both now in jail.
Jim Torbett was sentenced to six years in prison for child sex abuse (Image: Daily Record)
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He claims the coach tried to impress youngsters with a Celtic ID card signed by a senior figure at the club and describing him as an official scout.
The scout can’t be named for legal reasons but
Police Scotland have confirmed there is a warrant for his arrest. Speaking exclusively to the
Record, an alleged victim of the scout said: “I was abused by this man over years, repeatedly.
“His power over boys stemmed from the fact that he carried a card saying he was a scout with Celtic FC. He would show it all the time because it gave him status.”
He added: “The abuse happened at a house in Argyll and at my own house in Paisley between 1968 and the early 70s.
“I took this to the police in 2015. They were brilliant in the way they dealt with me but nothing seems to have happened since. I want justice.
“He was a young teacher. All the guys liked him and thought he was a good guy.
“He ran the football team in second year at school and would take boys to Celtic games, in the European Cup.
“At weekends, he would take boys to Argyll. That’s where I was first abused. I remember trying to get to sleep that night wondering what had happened. I was so naive.
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“Other boys were there. I believe they were being abused as well. He would take three boys to Argyll at a time.
“A friend of mine, who is sadly deceased now, was also abused. I know of another victim who has spoken to police.”
It is claimed the abuser was so convincing he was able to befriend an alleged victim’s parents to the point where he would stay at their house.
The victim said he tried to commit suicide when he was still being abused as a child. The abuse stopped when he was 14 and he went on to play for the scout’s teams as a young adult.
He says that he and another alleged victim, who is now dead, were contacted by police in the mid-90s. They were asked whether they were abused by the scout.
He said: “I told the police nothing. I then spoke to my friend and asked if he’d been contacted. He said he had but had also said nothing.
“It was the first time we’d talked about the abuse between ourselves. When we were young, it was never talked about. Later I think we tried to remove it from our minds.
“I regret not telling the police in the 90s. Another victim must have contacted them and our testimonies would have helped.
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“I regret not speaking out then but I had young children and I wanted to forget the whole thing.
“But in later life, I’ve become more and more affected by what went on when I was young. I feel I was robbed of my childhood. Now, I feel robbed of something as simple as justice.”
The witness the scout’s teams would regularly play Torbett’s Celtic BC teams.
He said: “There were boys in our youth teams that went on to play for Torbett or Cairney at Celtic Boys’ Club.
“They had strong links and the scout was clearly friends with both Torbett and Cairney.”
It is feared the perpetrator of the abuse may now be living abroad.
Police Scotland confirmed that a warrant has been issued for the alleged abuser. The Crown Office confirmed that the case is “live”. Celtic FC made no comment.
In May, the
Record revealed that Celtic FC investigated and cleared boys’ club leaders in 1986, describing claims against them as “scurrilous”.
Some of Torbett’s abuse of boys happened after that investigation.
Celtic revealed last month that they have been carrying out a new two-year investigation into the abuse claims at Celtic BC.
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