Police inspector awarded for 'male allyship' sacked over sex assaults in Glasgow and Edinburgh

A British Transport Police officer has been sacked after sexually assaulting two colleagues during staff nights out in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Inspector Ryan Tierney was dismissed from the force following a public misconduct hearing in August.

Tierney was found by an independent panel to have sexually assaulted two women by “unwanted touching” while drunk on staff outings.

Their report found that the officer had “made no expression of regret or remorse” in light of the allegations and had accused the women of fabricating evidence.

Complaints were made against the officer in 2022, after it emerged that he was to be given an award for “male allyship” for his work in supporting a female member of staff.

The first woman reported that the inspector had made sexualised comments toward her and sexually assaulted her on a night out at Maggie May’s bar in Glasgow in December 2016, but declined to pursue a formal complaint at the time.

The allegation was found to be proven by the panel.

The panel also ruled that Tierney had sexually assaulted another female colleague during a work Christmas night out in Edinburgh in December 2013 at the Alexander Graham Bell Pub.

The inquiry heard that Tierney sat next to the woman and placed his hand on her bottom. She said: “Ryan, you’ll need bigger hands than that, take your f***ing hand off my arse.”

She verbally objected several more times, telling him to remove his hand before he did so.

She made a statement to Police Scotland in March 2023 regarding the incident.

Tierney was acquitted of sexual assault following a criminal trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court in 2024.

But, in its findings, the misconduct panel said it “attached no weight” to the acquittal in determining whether the allegations were proven.

It added: “The outcomes of the criminal and regulatory processes are based on decisions taken by different bodies, with different functions, addressing different questions at different times”.

Following the misconduct hearing, Tierney was dismissed without notice.

Professional manager Kam Saund commented: “Inspector Tierney’s dismissal is evidence that we will never consider allegations to be historic – we will always thoroughly investigate anyone suspected of wrongdoing and hold them to account.

“Throughout the proceedings, Tierney showed no remorse or regret, and instead attempted to deflect blame from himself by claiming both victims had lied about what happened, which is not only an insult to them but also demonstrates a complete lack of accountability and integrity.

“A police officer sexually assaulting two women is so fundamentally damaging to public confidence that I wholeheartedly support the decision of the Independent Panel to dismiss Tierney with immediate effect.