ABUSED BY THE BOYS’ BRIGADE
Traumatised victim accuses leaders of adding to his agony
Atraumatised abuse victim has accused the Boys’ Brigade of adding to his agony.
Alex Pollock said the organisation failed to protect him when he was a boy and has failed him again after claiming there is no proof his alleged abuser was a BB officer.
Mr Pollock, now 60, has a number of photographs showing the man as a leader in his BB uniform.
He added: “The photographs from the time speak for themselves. The organisation taught us about honour and responsibility.
“They had a responsibility to keep me safe from harm. Their denials now are anything but honourable.”
An abuse victim is suing the Boys’ Brigade for damages after accusing a leader of molesting him, we can reveal.
Yesterday, Alex Pollock said BB leaders failed him at the time of the abuse in 1970 and again doing so today by claiming they have no records of his alleged attacker as an officer.
Mr Pollock, 60, who has photographs from the time showing Duncan Mitchell, then 21, as a leader in his BB uniform, said: “I was shocked at the way the Boys’ Brigade tried to deny responsibility. “They might not have kept the evidence that shows Mitchell was part of the brigade, but I have photographs of him in his uniform and with me, which speak for themselves.
“I spent my childhood as an active member of the Life Boys then the Boys’ Brigade until I was abused by Duncan Mitchell.
“The organisation taught us about honour and responsibility. They had a responsibility to keep me safe from harm.
And their denials now are anything but honourable.” Lawyers for the Brigade
‘ There may be others suffering in silence as I have done
have tried to reject Mr Pollock’s legal action, saying they have only “limited records” of his alleged abuser.
They claimed those records did not support the claim Mitchell was an officer with the Brigade in 1970.
Mr Pollock, originally from Kilwinning, Ayrshire, is to press ahead with his legal action, claiming the abuse by Brigade officer Mitchell, who is now dead, destroyed his life.
In 2015 he reported Mitchell to the police, after being encouraged to speak out by the shocking revelations about broadcaster Jimmy Savile.
He was devastated to be told that there could be no prosecution due to a lack of corroborating evidence, and Mitchell died a few months later, aged 66.
But he received a criminal injuries compensation claim of £2,000 after authorities accepted he had been abused while a BB member.
Law firm Clyde & Co told Mr Pollock the Brigade had instructed them to reject his claim.
In a letter to Mr Pollock, the lawyers wrote: “The Boys’ Brigade hold very limited records. They do not show that Duncan Mitchell was a Warrant Officer at the time alleged.
“Furthermore, we consider that a fair hearing will not be possible. The alleged abuser is dead. The group captain from 1970 is also dead.
“There is substantial prejudice. There is a dearth of documentary evidence.” Clyde & Co said they had been instructed to “repudiate the claim”. But Mr Pollock says this has made him determined to press ahead as he believes “there may be others suffering in silence as I have done all these years”.
Although he tried to avoid being near Mitchell, Mr Pollock claimed he struck repeatedly, forcing him to quit and lie to his parents about the reasons why.