A RETIRED senior police officer has been jailed for 18 months for sexually assaulting three women.
Ian Paterson made inappropriate remarks to women and touched their bodies while working as the chief executive of a charity in Aberdeen.
The former chief superintendent started working at the Aberdeen Council of Voluntary Organisations after he retired from Grampian Police.
The respected 62-year-old was known for his dedication to his role which helped to improve the organisation where he worked.
But he resigned from his position in October last year after police launched an investigation into his conduct with women.
The shamed charity boss had been touching women inappropriately on different occasions between July 2011 and October 2012.
He was convicted of three offences by a jury following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court last month and jailed for 18 months yesterday.
Andrew McIntyre, Procurator Fiscal for Sheriff and Jury cases in the North of Scotland, said yesterday: "Victims can have confidence that their cases will be handled by specialists, who are committed wherever possible to bringing those who commit sexual offences of any kind to justice."
Paterson was tried facing nine charges of indecent and sexual assaults against seven women in October.
But the charity boss, who was suspended from his role, denied the offences and insisted that he was just a "tactile" person.
However, a jury of 10 women and five men took four hours to convict Paterson of three sexual assaults by a majority verdict and Sheriff Annella Cowan jailed him for 18 months.
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