Christopher Wylie

A former Police Scotland officer, Christopher Wylie, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for a course of abusive behaviour towards a woman that included sexual offences and physical violence. The abuse, which spanned from April 2019 to December 2021, took place at a Highland hamlet and other locations, as reported by BBC News on 15 May 2024.

Wylie, aged 47, joined Police Scotland in 2009 but was convicted following a trial at the High Court in Inverness where he denied the charges. The jury found him guilty of engaging in conduct that was abusive towards the victim and endangered her life. Key elements of the abuse included having sexual intercourse with the woman without her consent and offering her to another man in exchange for drugs, actions that led to his placement on the sex offenders register.

• Wylie grabbed the victim's mobile phone, read her messages, and continually called and messaged her to control her movements.
• He threatened to harm himself and sent photographs of self-inflicted injuries to manipulate her.
• He hid her car keys and phone, demanding she send photos to prove her location.
• In one incident, he lunged at her while in possession of a knife, causing her to fall to the floor during a struggle.
• He seized her by the neck, squeezed to restrict her breathing, and covered her mouth and nose with his hands, throttling her.

At the High Court in Edinburgh, Judge Michael O'Grady KC described the behaviour as "appalling, sustained and humiliating" and stated that "such behaviour is bound to attract a significant period of imprisonment". The judge highlighted the constant nature of the abuse over 20 months.

Defence counsel Brian McConnachie KC noted that Wylie maintained his innocence despite the jury's rejection of his account. He described Wylie as a first-time offender who was abusing alcohol at the time and assessed as posing a low risk of reoffending. McConnachie added that Wylie's background as a police officer would make his time in custody particularly difficult, and he accepted that a custodial sentence was inevitable. Wylie has been transferred from Inverness jail to a prison in Dumfries.

Detective Constable Emma Ellis of Police Scotland commented: "I hope this sentence provides some measure of closure for his victim. Sexual abuse has no place in our communities." The case underscores the severity of domestic and sexual abuse, with the prosecution handled under Scots law at the High Court of Justiciary.