SNP predator Jordan Linden has been led away in handcuffs after being jailed for a series of sex attacks on five men and boys.
Sicko Linden was found guilty of the abuse, which included the five sex assault charges against males aged 15 to 18, back in March.
Linden was handcuffed to a GeoAmey officer as he was loaded into a van outside the court and was taken away to begin his time behind bars.
When the disgraced former politician arrived at court, he was met by with shouts of “beast”, “dirty b*d” and “Scottish nonce party” by angry members of the public.
The sicko also refused yet again to apologise to the victims of his depravity.
Pervert Linden looked stony faced in the dock as he learned he would be going to prison.
Sheriff Shead said he had no option but to send the beast to jail.
He said: said: “Having reflected on the submissions which were advanced and the evidence which was led in the trial and the jury’s verdicts, I reached the conclusion that the nature of the offences is such that that test has been met and that custody is the only appropriate disposal.
“I’ve decided that the following sentences should be imposed. On charge 19, a sentence of 18 months and on charge 22 a sentence of 12 months imprisonment, and on each of the remaining charges, sentences of nine months. Those sentences will run concurrently.”
Linden was prosecuted on 10 charges, relating to offences which occurred between 2011 and 2021.
The sicko was also found guilty of putting three males, aged 14 to 18, in a state of fear or alarm with his sexualised behaviour, sending sexual images to a 17-year-old and sending indecent communications to one of the men he’d sexually assaulted.
The sexual images included pictures of himself in a bubble bath and more explicit shots of his genitals.
One of the offences saw Linden sexually assault two people at a house party in Dundee after a Pride march in 2019.
Linden targeted victims during his time at the youth parliament, Young Scots for Independence, the SNP‘s youth wing and North Lanarkshire Council, where he served as leader.
Linden, of Bellshill, denied all the charges – saying they either did not take place, or were consensual.
After a seven-day trial, the jury at Falkirk Sheriff Court debated for less than four hours to reach the verdicts.
Defending, David Moggach KC said his client had faced “difficulties” in his teenage years and experienced “social isolation”, before joining the Scottish Youth Parliament.
The brief added that Linden’s conviction had been “a significant and sobering experience” and that there is “now an awareness on Mr Linden’s part about how before his behaviour was simply unacceptable”.
Mr Moggach pleaded for as “lenient a sentence” as Sheriff Shead could hand down.
Claims of Linden’s twisted behaviour first emerged in newspaper reports in 2022.
But a shameless self-pitying statement was issued by the SNP where the beast moaned about the impact of the claims on his mental health.
He was elected leader of North Lanarkshire Council in May 2022 but resigned from the post a few weeks later when allegations emerged.
He was later reported to be working as a karaoke host.
He was arrested in February 2024.
The scandal has seen the SNP accused of a cover up in an alleged bid to protect the predator at the expense of victims.
A former SNP councillor accused the party of a Linden cover-up after he claimed he was expelled for raising concerns over the politician’s behaviour.
Paul Di Mascio, who now stands as an independent for Airdrie South, said he was forced out of the party three years ago after supporting a colleague who raised concerns about Linden’s behaviour towards him.
He made the claims on a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, after the guilty verdict.
Speaking on the campaign trail in Glasgow, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: “My first thought was about the victims of Jordan Linden because they have been through the most horrific circumstances you can imagine.
“But the broader tragedy here is that the SNP were warned year after year about the inappropriate behaviour and failed to take action.
“In actual fact, so much so that there was a group of councillors within that same local authority who quit their party to become independent councillors and still the machine chose to protect the individual, the reputation as long as they could. And that’s the point I’m making about John Swinney and the SNP.
“There is a rotten culture at the heart of the SNP. This is who they are. Culture, secrecy, cover up, corruption.”
Scottish Conservative and Unionist candidate for Uddingston and Bellshill Meghan Gallacher said: “My first thoughts are with the victims who suffered at the hands of this vile predator.
“Jordan Linden repeatedly abused his position of trust with devastating effect and he shamefully still refuses to apologise for his abhorrent crimes.
“John Swinney and other senior figures within the SNP still have serious questions to answer about what they knew and when about Linden’s crimes.
“They repeatedly turned a blind eye to complaints from victims and in typical SNP fashion decided to protect one of their own rather than doing the right thing.
“It stinks of SNP secrecy and cover-up. We saw this when they tried to stop stories about Derek Mackay grooming a young boy being published.
“We saw it when they welcomed Patrick Grady back into the party after he sexually assaulted a party staffer.
“Sleaze and scandal have been the hallmark of the SNP’s two decades in power.”
An SNP spokesperson said: “The SNP welcomes the verdict against Jordan Linden and commends the bravery of the individuals who came forward and shared their experiences with the police.
“We hope that today’s sentencing will provide some measure of justice for the victims of Mr Linden’s actions.”
Money & Markets Editor
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