Court / Man found guilty of sexual offences
A MAN from Shetland has been found guilty of sexual assault following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.
The court heard that Ellis Birnie, 27, assaulted one woman during an outing.
The victim, who is diabetic, said that at the time she was “very, very deeply asleep, almost comatose” as her blood sugars were high.
She told the court: “I was completely sparked out. I woke up at one point to find his hand inside my trousers.”
“I had come to enough to realise stuff was going on, but I was not fully alert,” she said in pre-recorded evidence played to a jury at Birnie’s trial.
The woman said the incident occurred on October 2018 but told the court that Birnie had previously assaulted her at his home in Sandveien, Lerwick.
She said in September that year Birnie had shown her round at the address, including going into a bedroom.
The woman said she was pinned down and could not get up, and Birnie carried out sex acts.
Birnie had denied a string of charges during his trial but was convicted of three offences on Wednesday on majority verdicts by the jury.
He was found guilty of sexually assaulting his first victim on various occasions between 12 September and 3 December in 2018 at the address at Sandveien and other locations in Shetland.
Birnie was also found guilty of sexually assaulting a second woman in Shetland between 1 February and 24 August 2020.
Birnie was also convicted of engaging in abusive behaviour towards the second woman in 2020.
The trial judge, Lord Richardson, deferred sentence on Birnie until next month for the preparation of a background report.
Birnie was remanded in custody and placed on the sex offenders’ register.
Responding to the news, detective sergeant Bruce Peebles said: “The conviction of Birnie sends a clear message to anyone found guilty of sexual offences, you will be brought to justice.
“He befriended his vulnerable victims and I want to acknowledge their tremendous bravery, which has ultimately helped in this conviction. His actions will have had a long term effect on them and he must now face the consequences for his horrific behaviour.
“I hope today’s outcome will give them some form of closure.
“We would take this opportunity to encourage anyone who has been a victim of such crimes that should they wish to report this to the police, they will be treated sensitively, listened to, and all such allegations will be investigated thoroughly.”
By Edinburgh Courts Press Services
If you have been affected by crime, help is available. Whether you are victim, a witness, or the accused, you can find independent, impartial, and confidential support in Shetland.
For victims of general crime:
Victim Support Shetland
Phone: 01595744524 or 0800 1601985
Web: https://victimsupport.scot/locations/victim-support-shetland/
Email: VictimSupportHighlandsIslands@victimsupportsco.org.uk
For anyone affected by crime & harm seeking a restorative approach:
Space2face
Phone: 07564 832467
Web: https://www.space2face.org
Email: info@space2face.org
For anyone affected by gender-based violence, including domestic abuse, coercive control, stalking, sexual assault, and rape:
Shetland Women’s Aid
Phone: 01595 692070
Web: https://www.shetlandwa.org
Email: office@shetlandwa.org
The Compass Centre (Shetland Rape Crisis)
Phone: 01595 744402 or 08088 010302
Web: https://www.compasscentre.org
Email: contact@compasscentre.org
For anyone affected by substance use:
Shetland Recovery Hub and Community Network
Phone: 01595 744402
Web: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100075791869200
Email: recoveryhub@shetland.gov.uk
Shetland Alcohol & Drug Partnership
Phone: 01595 743060 or 07342 077789
Web: https://shetlandadp.org.uk
Email: shet.sadp@nhs.scot
Substance Use Recovery Service
Phone: 01595 743006
