ALASTAIR DARLINGTON FROM STEPPS ESCAPES JAIL AFTER SEXUAL OFFENSES INVOLVING TEENAGE GIRL NEAR GLASGOW

In August 2017, a man named Alastair Darlington, aged 28, narrowly avoided imprisonment after being convicted of sending indecent images and making sexual remarks to a 13-year-old girl. The incident took place in the context of a court hearing at Falkirk Sheriff Court, where Darlington appeared to face serious charges related to his inappropriate conduct.

During the proceedings, Sheriff Derek Livingston sentenced Darlington to a supervised community payback order for a duration of two years. As part of this sentence, Darlington was required to complete 200 hours of unpaid work within nine months. Additionally, he was placed on the sex offenders register for a period of three years. The sheriff emphasized that this sentence was a direct alternative to incarceration, noting the seriousness of the offense involving a young girl. Sheriff Livingston also acknowledged that Darlington was a first-time offender and had pleaded guilty, which spared the victim from having to testify in court.

Darlington, who resides on Lednock Road in Stepps, claimed that he was intoxicated at the time he contacted the girl at her home in Stenhousemuir on November 10 of the previous year. The court heard that the incident was part of a series of inappropriate online interactions that drew significant concern.

Earlier in July 2017, Darlington, a taekwondo medallist and former coach at the University of West of Scotland, was involved in another disturbing incident. He sent a sickening video of himself performing a sexual act to a 13-year-old girl via Snapchat. The court was informed that Darlington, who had previously achieved a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Taekwondo Championships, engaged with the girl on social media, telling her that “age doesn’t matter” as he sent her explicit images and videos.

Prosecutor Michael Maguire detailed the disturbing exchanges, revealing that Darlington sent a message asking if the girl was old enough, to which she responded that she was 15. Darlington allegedly replied that age did not matter. The court was shown evidence of Darlington sending a naked image of his genitals, which automatically deleted after ten seconds. When he sent another explicit image proposing a sexual act, the girl managed to take a screenshot as evidence and pleaded with him to stop. Despite her pleas, Darlington continued to send inappropriate messages, prompting her to block him on Snapchat and inform her mother.

Darlington admitted to causing the teenager to view sexual images and making sexual remarks to her. However, he entered a plea of not guilty to charges involving similar conduct towards a 14-year-old girl and a woman. The court agreed to defer sentencing until August and ordered Darlington to be placed on the sex offenders register, reflecting the gravity of his actions and the need for ongoing monitoring.