Revealed: 45% Rise In Stalking In Scotland

By Connor Gillies

We can reveal more and more Scottish people are being stalked. Over the last year, police tell us been a 45% rise in unwanted visitors turning up at doors and strangers sending flowers to a victim's work place in the last year.

Stalking is classed as unwanted or obsessive attention by an individual or group toward another person.

The word stalking is used, with some differing meanings, in psychology and psychiatry and also in some legal jurisdictions as a term for a criminal offense. Connor Gillies reports:

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Police Scotland recognises stalking as a serious form of abuse and a potentially dangerous crime. It can be a terrifying and debilitating experience for victims, their families and often their friends.

“Police Scotland is committed to providing a robust response, and our officers are trained to ensure that vulnerable individuals receive the support and protection they deserve when faced with the trauma of stalking, at the same time pursuing its perpetrators by all available means at our disposal.”

We spoke to this 18 year old stalking victim who does not want to reveal her identity:

Elizabeth Welsh is a lawyer who has dealt with many stalking cases: