Rikki Henderson

A disgraced former police officer from the north-east of Scotland has been spared imprisonment after accumulating a "sickening collection" of indecent images of children. Rikki Henderson, aged 25 and residing in Strichen, was found guilty by a jury at Aberdeen Sheriff Court in August of three charges related to sexual offences involving child abuse material and the non-consensual capture of an intimate image.

The court heard that Henderson, who had served as a trusted officer in the Army Cadet Force in Boddam near Peterhead, possessed images depicting children as young as eight engaged in sadistic sexual activity. These images were discovered in the "sent" folder of his WhatsApp Messenger account, with nine images in total: seven classified as category C (the least serious), one as category B, and one as category A (the most severe). Additionally, Henderson was convicted of taking and sharing a picture of a woman’s private parts without her consent.

Although Henderson faced accusations of two sexual assaults at the Army Cadet Force, the jury deemed these charges not proven. He had denied all wrongdoing throughout the trial. At sentencing yesterday, Sheriff William Summers addressed Henderson directly, noting the impact on the female victim who was compelled to testify due to his not guilty plea. "The woman who you took a picture of had been forced to come to court as a result of your not guilty plea and she did so with dignity, which was the absolute opposite of how you conducted yourself," the sheriff stated. He further remarked, "I recognise that your life has fallen apart in a very meaningful way. You are solely and entirely the author of that."

Defence agent John MacLeod highlighted the severe consequences for Henderson, stating that his client had "lost everything" including two careers and exhibited a "lack of emotional maturity" according to reports. Despite the gravity of the offences, Henderson avoided a custodial sentence. Instead, Sheriff Summers ordered him to be placed under supervision for three years, added to the sex offenders’ register for the same period, and required to complete 260 hours of unpaid work.

Following the sentencing, a spokesman for the NSPCC condemned Henderson’s actions, emphasising his betrayal of public trust. "As a police officer and army cadet instructor, Henderson was in a position of great trust in the community but ignored this responsibility to accumulate a sickening collection of images of children being abused," the spokesman said. "Behind every image was a real child suffering appalling abuse and Henderson’s actions in possessing them have only fuelled the demand for this sickening material to be produced." The case was heard at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, with Police Scotland as the prosecuting force.