A married police officer dubbed Mr Tickle by his shift because of his drunken groping has been found guilty of sexually assaulting two female colleagues.
Police Constable Austin Barrett’s career was in ruins last night after a sheriff ruled there was a clear sexual element to the series of attacks during police social events.
Perth Sheriff Court heard Barrett was a “predator” who repeatedly touched female police officers and his details were added to the sex offenders register.
Sheriff Jamie Gilchrist told him: “I am satisfied the events described by the Crown witnesses took place, were deliberate, unwanted and amounted to assault.
“Both Crown witnesses were convincing and I saw nothing obvious that would tend to undermine their credibility or reliability.”
Depute fiscal Lisa Marshall said: “Austin Barrett’s behaviour, without exception, appears to be predatory, opportunistic and unacceptable and needs to be called out for what it is.
“It is not a joke. It’s sexual assault.”
One Police Scotland officer told the court how Barrett assaulted her during a Christmas night out, a few months after groping her colleague.
Barrett, 43, who is an elected representative for the Scottish Police Federation, was found guilty of three charges of sexually assaulting two women in separate incidents during 2018.
An officer in her 30s told the court Barrett was notorious for drunken groping and said: “It was expected that he would be like that on most nights out.
“It was like a work joke how Austin acted on nights out. (His nickname) was different versions of Mr Tickle and things like that. That’s the one I remember.”
She said Barrett had groped her colleague under a table during a poker school at the end of a barbecue hosted by a senior officer for members of the force.
“The dining table changed into a poker table,” she said.
“He seemed drunk. You could see it in his eyes and face and he was slurring his words when he spoke.
“He was saying strange things, out of context to the normal conversation round the table.
“His right hand seemed to go under the table towards her.
“It looked like he was touching her thigh. She kept saying ‘Austin, I mean it, stop.’ She seemed really uncomfortable.”
The other officer, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she was at a second barbecue with other Police Scotland colleagues when Barrett sexually assaulted her again.
She said: “He was quite drunk. His speech was quite slurred. He put his hand around me at one point and grabbed my leg.
“He had his hand at the bottom of my dress, between my legs. I told him to stop it, cut it out, words to that effect. It was above my knee. My inner thigh.”
The first officer said she had to be persuaded to go to a police Christmas night out at Crieff Hydro Hotel because she felt so uneasy about Barrett’s drunken behaviour.
During the evening she said she was dancing with other colleagues when Barrett appeared behind her and pinched her bottom twice.
“I was aware he was behind me. It was like a nip over my dress.
“I tried to sort of ignore it. I looked over and he just looked drunk.
“It shouldn’t have happened. It just wasn’t very nice. I wouldn’t say it was to hurt me, it was just more annoying. I could see him smirking at me.
“It wasn’t the only thing Austin did that night and people were saying we needed to look out for each other because of how drunk he was.”
Barrett was convicted of sexually assaulting the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, by repeatedly touching her on the bottom at the hotel between December 12 and 13 2018.
Barrett, whose address was given as c/o professional standards, French Street, Glasgow, has served as a police officer in Fife since 2001.
He was also found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in her 30s at an address in Cardenden by repeatedly touching her leg without consent between June 3 and 26 2018.
The officer, who previously worked as a gas engineer, was also found guilty of assaulting that woman in Kinglassie during July 2018 by placing his hand inside her dress.
The other complainer, the constable in her 30s, said she was also aware that Barrett was known within his team as Mr Tickle.
Sentence was deferred for social work reports and the sheriff confirmed Barrett’s details would be added to the register. He was granted bail.
Barrett faces an internal investigation by senior management and faces being forced out of Police Scotland.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We are aware of the outcome of the case and a report will be made to the Assistant Chief Constable for Professionalism and Assurance for consideration of conduct proceedings.”
