Question reference: S6W-14209
- Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 20 January 2023
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Current status: Answered by Keith Brown on 2 February 2023
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any trends in reported incidents of spiking, and what steps it is taking to ensure that perpetrators are (a) caught, (b) prosecuted and (c) appropriately sentenced.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not intervene in or comment on the investigation, prosecution or sentencing of individual cases which are independent operational matters for Police Scotland, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and the courts.
Police Scotland have advised they take all reports of spiking seriously and thoroughly investigates all reports.
A comprehensive Investigative Strategy has been developed and circulated to provide guidance and direction to staff responding to and investigating incidents of spiking. A Detective Superintendent has national investigative oversight and Senior Investigating Officers have been appointed within each policing division to lead on all spiking related investigations locally. Police Scotland’s focus is on identifying people who carry out an assault in this way, investigating fully, gathering evidence, and working with Crown Office to bring the perpetrator to justice.
Where evidence is provided to Crown Office as regards an offence, it is for independent prosecutors to decide what action to take. If a case is prosecuted, it is for the independent court to determine whether an accused person is guilty and if so, what an appropriate sentence should be.