1500 sign petition over alleged rape
BY SALLY HIND MORE than 1500 people have signed a petition calling on Scotland’s Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf to take up the case of a fiveyear-old alleged rape victim.
We told last week how the parents of a youngster, from Irvine, demanded an investigation into why the accused, an older boy, was offered social work support instead of facing charges.
Prosecutors said the accused boy’s age was the “determining factor” in their decision.
In a letter to prosecutors, the five-year old’s mum said the procurator fiscal and the Children’s Reporter had focused on the rights of the perpetrator, not the victim.
A relative of the young boy, who can’t be identified for legal reasons, said the family were delighted with the support for their case.