Rapist Ex-Officer May Retain Pension and Six-Figure Payout
Regulations may prevent authorities from confiscating the full pension of a former police officer convicted of rape and other sexual offenses.
A former police officer convicted of multiple sex crimes, including rape, may be able to retain his full pension and a lump sum payment of approximately £150,000, according to reports. Campbell Petrie, 50, committed sex crimes over a 16-year period and was promoted to sergeant despite an earlier investigation into an alleged attack.
Authorities and the Scottish Police Authority (SPA), the civilian oversight body for policing, are reportedly seeking to seize Petrie's pension. However, existing regulations could prevent its complete confiscation, particularly if his crimes cannot be proven to have occurred while he was on duty. This means Petrie could keep his lump sum pension payment, which would have been at risk if he had been convicted while still employed by the police.
Petrie was convicted on Wednesday of nine charges related to the physical and sexual abuse of two women between 2006 and 2022. He had previously been arrested in 2009 for offenses but continued his employment, eventually retiring last year after his second arrest. He is expected to lose the employer's contribution to his pension, which constitutes about 65% of the total.
Sources familiar with pension regulations suggest that unless it can be definitively proven that his offending was a direct result of his police role, confiscating the pension will be difficult. "This is a very difficult area and open to legal challenge," one insider commented. "People might think it would be a straightforward matter but there are strict rules on pensions."
Former Police Scotland superintendent Martin Gallagher stated that individuals convicted of serious crimes while serving should not benefit from public funds. He noted that while the employer's contribution might be forfeitable, the portion representing Petrie's own contributions is his private money. Gallagher indicated that the decision to seek the return of Petrie's lump sum would be up to the police, as he would not have been entitled to it had he been convicted while still in service.
Petrie, who was convicted of two rapes and seven other charges, has been remanded in custody. An SPA spokesperson affirmed the authority's commitment to pursuing pension forfeiture in all cases where the regulatory criteria are met.