How police call handlers TWICE ignored 999 plea

A MAN who twice dialled 999 to report having been assaulted was eventually found unconscious and badly injured after call handlers repeatedly snubbed his pleas for help.

A woman was also nearly raped at the property before officers arrived almost two hours after the alarm was raised.

The male victim was seriously assaulted at homeless accommodation in Penicuik, Midlothian, on three occasions between 2am and 3.02am on September 3, 2018. He dialled 999 at 2am and 2.21am to report the first two assaults and was unconscious by the time police arrived at 3.43am.

The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) found a controller at Bilston Area Control Room (ACR) failed to prioritise the incident. The PIRC said the male victim was attacked after he refused to join another man who wanted him to take part in the rape of a woman.

At 3.24am, details were brought to the attention of local police, who arrived at the scene at 3.43am. They found the victim unconscious, with severe facial injuries that required reconstructive surgery.

The attacker had forced entry to the woman’s locked room with intent to rape but she successfully fought him off.

The PIRC report concluded that the police failings were individual and not organisational as the ACR controller had ‘failed to prioritise’ the incident. It said measures have since been put in place to improve the management of calls.

Assistant Chief Constable John Hawkins said: ‘We have already identified and addressed a number of the concerns.’