A 23-year-old migrant has denied charges that he exposed himself, performed sex acts and made obscene gestures through a window at an asylum seeker hotel in Falkirk, a sheriff court was told Monday.
Said Ageed is accused of a series of indecent acts at the Hotel Cladhan between June 1 and Aug. 16 that prosecutors say included intentionally masturbating while looking at a man and a woman, making obscene gestures at the pair and exposing his genitals so they could be seen. The proceedings at Falkirk Sheriff Court were interpreted into Kurdish for Ageed, who is on bail and has denied the charges. A trial was set for Nov. 7.
Police Scotland has previously been involved in policing demonstrations outside the hotel, which began housing asylum seekers in 2022. The establishment has attracted regular anti-immigration protests in recent months, and court reports in recent days linked a number of incidents to public tensions surrounding the site.
Earlier this week a 63-year-old man was charged by Police Scotland with threatening and abusive behaviour outside the hotel and was released on an undertaking to appear in court at a later date, a force spokesperson said. The spokesperson declined to provide further detail during court processing.
Separately, Falkirk Sheriff Court last week heard that Scott Wyllie, 40, of Stenhousemuir, admitted a statutory breach of the peace after a telephone call to the hotel last November in which he warned, "Get these people out, we're coming," and made violent threats. The call, placed at 11:55 p.m., was diverted to reception at a sister property and was recorded by a member of night staff who then contacted police. Wyllie, described in court papers as a married father of three, avoided a custodial sentence.
Court documents in Ageed's case list the alleged offending over the two-and-a-half-month period this summer. The Crown must prove the allegations at trial. Ageed remains on bail pending the November hearing, and the court will reconvene then to hear evidence and submissions.
The Hotel Cladhan has been used to accommodate people seeking asylum since 2022 under arrangements with local authorities. Protests and policing around asylum accommodation have been a recurring issue across parts of the United Kingdom, prompting local authorities and police to balance community safety with the welfare and legal rights of people living at such sites.
No further comment was provided in court by Ageed's legal representative on Monday. Police Scotland and the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service confirmed the case is listed for trial on Nov. 7 and said routine procedures will be followed between now and that date.