Police Scotland suspends 45 officers over alleged violence against women as chief warns more will follow

From the Newshound archive · first published 8 October 2026 · last updated 9 October 2026.

Police Scotland chief constable Jo Farrell has warned that further officers will face action, revealing that between 40 and 50 currently serving officers are suspended and under investigation for offences related to violence against women and girls. Farrell told the BBC the cases are at varying stages, with 8,000 officers still to be revetted following rule changes introduced earlier this year. Three separate convictions in 2024 have already exposed a pattern of serious sexual violence among serving and retired officers. Retired officer Campbell Petrie was convicted in September on nine charges including two rapes carried out over 17 years while he was in service.

Cameron Ross was jailed for 10 years in July after being found guilty of raping two women and abusing a third across the Highlands and Western Isles.

Long-serving officer Alan Greer, who took his own life in May aged 47 following his arrest, is now the subject of a posthumous inquiry into alleged sexual violence and attempted murder targeting several women.

Farrell said her priority is making sure anyone who has committed wrongdoing 'feel the full force of the law'.