A millionaire racing tipster, Kevin Booth, has lost an appeal against a global travel ban imposed after he used an underground chamber at his remote Highland home to abuse vulnerable women. The Sheriff Appeal Court in Edinburgh upheld the ban on Tuesday, rejecting arguments made by Booth's lawyers.
Booth recruited women to work at his isolated Lochdhu Lodge in Caithness, where he is accused of subjecting them to 'punishment beatings' and forcing sexual acts through threats of violence. Between 1998 and December 2022, Booth engaged in a pattern of isolating women far from their homes before subjecting them to abuse, the court heard. A Trafficking and Exploitation Order for five years was initially granted by Wick Sheriff Court, requiring Booth to surrender his passport and inform police before hiring female employees.
During the proceedings, Sheriff Neil Wilson described the evidence as 'utterly harrowing.' He detailed one video showing a young Black woman handcuffed to a metal contraption in the lodge's 'tomb area.' In the video, Booth tells the woman she is being punished and needs to learn her lesson. She is heard screaming and crying, attempting to escape but unable to as Booth continues to beat her with different implements. Sheriff Wilson stated, "This appears to be nothing other than torture."
The underground chamber at Lochdhu Lodge was reportedly furnished with an empty coffin, life-size ancient Egyptian figures, and a metal bench.
Police Scotland began investigating Booth in 2019 after becoming aware of his activities. Officers seized hundreds of videos from his property depicting women being assaulted by him; 13 of these videos were presented to the court. While proceedings against Booth were discontinued in March 2021, former Police Scotland chief constable Sir Iain Livingstone initiated the civil action that led to the Trafficking and Exploitation Order.
This is not the first time Booth has encountered legal issues. In 1991, he was charged with assaulting children in his care at a school, leaving the UK before his trial to evade justice. He later received a three-month suspended jail sentence. In 2002, he was convicted of indecently assaulting his au pair and placed on the Sex Offenders Register for two years. He was also ordered to pay £2,000 in compensation after being convicted of indecent communication.