Inverness sex offender who touched up teen while babysitting avoids jail

A man who preyed on the young teenage victim he was babysitting has narrowly avoided jail.

Phil Moir (41) was charged with sexual assault of a minor.

At an earlier hearing, the court was told that Moir, of Sinclair Park, immediately apologised via a text message after he touched up a teenage girl as she lay on her bed five years ago.

However it was two years later that it was reported to the police and Moir was charged with the sex offence of touching her intimately when he was babysitting for a family at an Inverness property on an unspecified date in 2019.

Mr Moir was charged, with placing his hand on her thigh, repeatedly running his hand up and down her leg, repeatedly touching her private parts over their clothing and repeatedly touching and rubbing her buttocks over clothing.

He was given a three-year community payback order alongside being put on the Sex Offenders’ Register for three years. He can only have access to the internet if the serial number is given to his justice worker.

At his sentencing, Sherriff Gary Aitken said: “Failure to comply with this will inevitably lead to a custodial sentence.”