Top News

Luke Whittaker, the twisted fiance who concealed his vile paedophilia from his partner Tracy Gow, was sentenced to only three years in prison on Tuesday. A sheriff said his "depravity knew little bounds".

The monster, 35, was caught with thousands of child abuse images and videos, including graphic footage of babies being raped, after police raided the Falkirk home he shared with Tracy, just two months before their planned wedding, reports the

Tracy condemned the court's decision, stating: "This is not justice, it is an insult to victims."

"He deserved at least 15 years. He'll walk out of prison in a couple of years, but those children will live with this trauma for the rest of their lives."

Earlier this week, the Daily Record reported how Tracy, a 45 year old finance professional, felt "physically sick" upon learning the extent of her former partner's offences, leading her to eject him immediately after his arrest.

Whittaker faced sentencing via video link from Low Moss Prison, having pleaded guilty to downloading, possessing, and distributing abhorrent child abuse content. He has been placed on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.

Tracy, now burdened with debts exceeding £20,000 due to the called-off wedding, commented on the sheer horror of the material, saying: "The severity and amount of the videos and photos is absolutely horrific."

The thought of him downloading images of babies and children being violated caused her immense distress.

"This is not about me, this is about protecting children from an evil predator. He deserves to be known everywhere for what he's done. I'm just glad he's off the streets, even if it's not for long enough."

Falkirk Sheriff Court heard how police officers were given entry by Whittaker's unsuspecting fiancee Tracy, after they raided their home on the morning of July 19 last year due to intelligence received. Prosecutor Jamie Hillend recounted: "Police officers executed a warrant at the address where the accused was living with his fiancee. She was the only person home and allowed officers access."

Initially, no illegal material was discovered on devices at their residence. However, on the same day at 8.50 am, an additional raid took place at Whittaker's workplace, leading to the confiscation of his iPhone laden with over 1,100 child abuse images, including the most extreme Category A content.

Horrifyingly, some footage depicted children bound and immobile. Whittaker had shared these disturbing materials in numerous Telegram chat groups predominantly consisting of Category A files.

Tracy said: "He wasn't just looking, he was distributing. Sending them to other paedophiles.

"That takes it to another level entirely. I trusted him with my life and he was doing this behind my back. It's worse than anything I could have imagined."

Whittaker was arrested again in December while living in temporary homeless accommodation after being removed from his unit for "unrelated reasons."

When staff packed up his room, they found 32 sheets of A4 paper, face down on his bedside table, containing printed child abuse images, some showing girls aged five to 14, including some being orally raped.

Police also seized another iPhone, which contained 1,514 additional child abuse files, including 326 Category A images and three videos lasting more than two hours, showing the rape of babies.

Sheriff Craig Harris said Whittaker had actively "furthered a horrendous cycle of evil."

He addressed Whittaker directly, saying: "The material you had showed your depravity knows little bounds."

Previously, Sheriff Maryam Labaki had referred to the case as "utterly horrific" during its initial stage in April, remarking it was "at the upper end of what one sees in the sheriff court."

Despite the serious nature of his crimes, Whittaker was sentenced to only three years, reduced from 4.5 years due to his early guilty plea, with the sentence backdated to the time of his remand.

Tracty expressed her disgust, saying: "He said he did it because he was bored and drinking. That's no excuse. Plenty of people drink and none of them look at child abuse.

"What kind of man prints those images and leaves them by his bed? A dangerous, calculating predator. And people need to remember that."

Since Whittaker's arrest, Tracy has been determined to settle the £20,000 wedding costs alone, having initially set up and subsequently removed a GoFundMe page for assistance.

"This whole thing has broken me, but I'll recover. The victims he exploited don't get that choice. That's who this is about, the victims."