A shamed police sergeant who terrorised three women over a 26-year period is now working as an undertaker.
Mourners have been left horrified that Iain Pittams has had a hands-on role in the funerals of their loved ones. One said they were left shaken after arriving at a relative’s service to find Pittams driving the hearse, carrying the coffin and handing out cords at the graveside.
He is employed by funeral homes and funeral services company Dignity PLC, which boasts on its website it only hires “caring individuals” with “compassion” and “respect”. The 54-year-old secured the job at the firm’s base in Kilmarnock, after having to quit the force when he was exposed as a multiple wife beater.
Pittams carried out a catalogue of physical and emotional abuse on two wives and a long-term girlfriend over more than 20 years. He threw a cutlery drawer at one victim because it was dirty, and lashed out at another when he couldn’t find a pair of socks while they were on holiday.
He assaulted and abused his victims after joining the force, getting into a relationship with one and marrying her after investigating her stalking at the hands of her ex. At Kilmarnock Sheriff Court in 2018, Pittams, then of Hamilton, was spared jail for the offences. He dodged disciplinary action by resigning before the court case came to an end.
Despite his conviction, he was hired by Dignity and works for the firm as a Funeral Service Operative, regularly interacting with heartbroken mourners. And one told the Record they were shocked to see him involved in their loved one’s funeral service. They said: “Recently I was at the funeral of a relative I was very close to.
“I was horrified when we turned up to the parlour for her service to see Iain Pittams working there. I couldn’t believe it. I recognised him straight away as the police sergeant who had to retire early after being exposed as a serial domestic abuser. He helped remove the coffin from the parlour after the service and even drove the hearse to the graveside.
“Once there, he helped carry the coffin to the grave and also helped handing out the cords. I feel totally disgusted that someone could be in this line of work after what he’s done. Other relatives who were there couldn’t believe it either. It was shocking for a police officer to be charged with that kind of domestic abuse and his court case is still fresh in people’s minds.
"I looked on the Dignity website after the service and saw it says staff help people ‘through difficult times and always with compassion, respect, openness, and care’. The company also says, ‘We offer a range of challenging and rewarding roles for caring individuals’, and I found a job advert which says they want ‘professional and empathetic’ staff.
“How can a guy who terrorised three women he was supposed to love have compassion and respect for, and be empathetic to, people he doesn’t even know? I am disgusted that a serial domestic abuser is interacting with vulnerable people at such a difficult time for them, when they are grieving the loss of a loved one.
"Myself, my family and my friends won’t ever use Dignity again if this is the sort of people they employ.” When asked if it was a suitable job for him, Pittams defended the decision to hire him. He told the Record he had been working in an office-based admin only role, with no access to the public, for several months.
But when told he had been seen delivering coffins to a funeral parlour the day before, he said it was “a one-off”. He added: “I declared my previous convictions to my current employer. Human resources made the decision that they were happy for me to be employed by them.
“I haven’t hidden anything from them. I’m a changed person, I have gone through counselling, I am in a stable, loving relationship, I just want to get on with my life. What I did was wrong and I’m fully aware of that, I’ve admitted my guilt and I’ve done everything I can to make myself a better person.
“I’m trying to make amends for what I did in the past. I’m still evolving as a person. I fully understand what my actions caused, the heartache, the grief, the upset, for everybody in my life.”
A spokesman for Dignity said: “We have a very robust recruitment and screening process.
“Mr Pittams satisfied all the necessary checks we undertake, such as DBS and referencing, before joining the business as a funeral service operative.” During his court case, defence lawyer Iain Cahill said Pittams, who had 26 years’ police service, appeared to have an “undiagnosed mental health problem dating from 1985-1991” while he was in the Navy.
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