LIB DEM IS GUILTY OF STALKING STUDENTS
Campaign officer harassed Edinburgh Uni couple
A CAMPAIGN officer for the Lib Dems has been suspended after being convicted of stalking two Edinburgh University students.
Ryan Lytwyn became besotted with his victims, showering one with gifts and grabbing him in the street. And he threatened to out the other as gay to his parents.
The 23-year-old was found guilty after a trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.
He was handed a 12-month community payback order. Yesterday, a Lib Dem spokesman said: “He is suspended from the party pending further investigation and has been removed as campaigns officer for Young Liberals.”
Charity worker Lytwyn, of Trinity, Edinburgh, harassed one of his victims in the city’s George Square, Pollock Halls of Residence in Holyrood Park Road and elsewhere between December 2015 and March 2016, causing him fear or alarm. He pretended to still be a student at Edinburgh University, where he studied politics, and sent him messages on social media.
Lytwyn also staked out and “loitered” at venues he knew his victim visited, and he turned up at his home uninvited.
He stalked his first victim’s boyfriend in various places in Edinburgh, behaving aggressively towards him and threatening to expose his sexuality. An A GIANT iguana is being cared for by animal welfare experts after being rescued from a layby. The Scottish SPCA were called after a man found the 5ft-long reptile next to the A702 in the Borders. The creature is now at an SSPCA centre in Lanarkshire, where staff have named him Iggy. Officer DawnVale Lowdon said: “Despite having a few bumps, he was all right once he had been warmed up. “If no one comes forward for him, we’ll keep him until we can find him a suitable forever home.” Edinburgh University spokeswoman said: “We have well-established policies, procedures and systems in place, as well as highly trained staff, to ensure that the university is a safe and secure environment in which to study and work.”
Lytwyn insists he doesn’t accept the court verdict and will be lodging an appeal.
Last year, he was involved in a race row after painting his face black to dress as the Grim Reaper for a university Halloween event.