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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Jon Brady

Convicted paedophile arrested in Thailand after fleeing Scotland eight years ago

A convicted paedophile is set to be extradited back to Scotland eight years after he was found guilty of possessing indecent material and fled to Thailand.

William Dempster, from Lanarkshire, was convicted of having indecent pictures of children in his possession in May 2014.

But following his conviction he fled the UK before he could be sentenced, sparking an eight-year-long hunt to track him down.

Police in Scotland said on Tuesday that Dempster, 46, has been traced in a city in Thailand.

Officers from the Royal Thai Police, working with Scottish counterparts and the National Crime Agency, arrested Dempster on May 30.

He was detained under an international arrest warrant in Pattaya, a city around 62 miles south-east of the capital Bangkok.

Dempster will now face extradition proceedings in order to be returned to Scotland.

In a statement, Police Scotland said: "[A] 46-year-old man, William Dempster from Lanarkshire, was convicted of being found in possession of indecent images of children in May 2014.

"He fled the country before he could be sentenced and was believed to have fled to Thailand.

"Earlier today, following extensive enquiries by our officers and our colleagues at the National Crime Agency and the Royal Thai Police, he was arrested on an international warrant in Pattaya and will now face extradition proceedings."

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