The police investigation into the threats against Patricia Devlin is inadequate
MFRR partners wrote to Police Scotland, Police Service of Northern Ireland and the relevant ministries in Northern Ireland and Scotland to express our concern about the adequacy of ongoing investigations by Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and Police Scotland into threats made against Patricia Devlin.
On 28 October 2019, Northern Irish journalist, Patricia Devlin received threatening messages on her private Facebook account, which included threats of sexual violence against her young child. They were sent by an individual with known connections to paramilitary groups and white supremacist organisations. Subsequently, Devlin was again subjected to threats on social media in April 2020 and in August she received a phone call from the suspected perpetrator.
Regrettably, the MFRR observes that to date, no effective investigation has taken place. We call on PSNI and Police Scotland to ensure that the necessary steps are taken with the appropriate urgency that lead to the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrator of the threats against Patricia Devlin and to immediately put in place the necessary protection measures.
