Police dismiss social media rumours of serious sexual assault in Aberdeenshire
A viral post made claims of a serious sexual assault and abduction in Banchory, but police said they never attended and it was never reported to them
Last updated 5th Oct 2021
A social media post, which went viral, claimed that a women was drugged, abducted, assaulted and left for dead in Banchory before being saved by members of the public. Police Scotland has since released a statement saying "no such report" was received.
The post, which has since been deleted, claimed police were in attendance to the alleged incident over the weekend.
A statement has since been published by North East Police: "We can confirm that officers in Aberdeenshire have become aware of a social media post alleging that a serious sexual assault took place in the Banchory area over the weekend.
"We’d like to reassure the community that officers did not attend any such incident and no reports have been made to police.
"Police Scotland takes all incidents of sexual violence seriously and will thoroughly investigate any reports to establish the circumstances and bring those responsible to justice."
A second statement was released by police on Tuesday 5 October:
"Following online reports about an alleged incident in Banchory over the weekend, officers have carried out a number of enquiries into the matter.
"We can confirm that concerns were raised regarding the wellbeing of a woman, however it has been established she is safe and well.
"No crimes have been reported and any suggestions that a serious sexual assault took place would be wholly inaccurate."