Humza Yousaf considering public inquiry into Emma Caldwell murder
- Published
It took 19 years for Emma Caldwell's killer to be brought to justice
Humza Yousaf has appeared to suggest he would be open to a judge-led public inquiry into how police initially handled the murder of Emma Caldwell.
Iain Packer was jailed for at least 36 years on Wednesday after being convicted of murdering Emma in remote woodland 19 years ago.
Emma's family believes "misogyny and corruption" in the police left him free to rape more women after the murder.
Officers have apologised for how the original inquiry was handled.
Packer was also convicted of 11 rapes and a 21 further charges including sexual assaults and abduction, which judge Lord Beckett described as an "extraordinary campaign of sexual violence" over a 26-year period.
Four former detectives who were involved in the earliest stages of the inquiry into Emma's murder told BBC Scotland News that evidence of Packer's violent, abusive and predatory behaviour was known from the start of their investigation.
But they say senior officers told them not to pursue Packer and instead wrongly built a case against four Turkish men - who were charged with Emma's murder in 2007 before the case against them collapsed the following year.
Packer was only arrested and charged with Emma's murder and a string of sexual offences against a total of 22 women in February 2022.
Mr Yousaf was challenged on the case at first minister's questions by both Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.
The two opposition leaders called for a judge-led public inquiry to examine the police failings that they said should be presided over by someone from outside Scotland.
Mr Ross read out quotes from a conversation with Emma's mother, Margaret Caldwell, who asked the first minister "what are you waiting for?" when it comes to setting up the inquiry
He said: "Margaret had a message for the first minister. She said this: 'If Mr Yousaf genuinely cares about the victims and my Emma, then he has no other option but to organise an independent public inquiry'.
"And she continued, 'With respect, what are you waiting for?"'
Mr Yousaf said there was a strong argument for any inquiry to be headed by someone from outside Scotland
Mr Sarwar also quoted from Margaret Caldwell, who said women who raised the alarm about Packer were "humiliated, dismissed and, in some instances, arrested whilst the police gifted freedom to an evil predator to rape and rape again".
Mr Yousaf said there was a chance Packer could appeal the jail sentence he was given - with the 36 year minimum term being the second longest ever handed down by a Scottish court.
He added: "A judge-led public inquiry is something that we're exploring, is absolutely not off the table and is something we're giving very serious consideration to given the systemic failings in this case".
The first minister also agreed that there was a "strong argument" for any inquiry to be headed by someone from outside of Scotland and said that "we still in Scotland have a serious problem with misogyny".
He revealed that he was scheduled to meet Emma's mother soon, and pledged to "come back urgently" to update MSPs as "women have waited far too long for justice".
Margaret Caldwell says she can “breathe again” after Emma’s killer was finally brought to justice
Mr Yousaf accepted that the victims of Packer - who was first interviewed by police the month after Emma's body was found and who repeatedly lied to investigators - were "ultimately let down" by police.
He said: "There are many questions to answer why Packer was able to evade justice (and) continue to commit many crimes as he did for so long."
"We still in Scotland have a serious problem with misogyny.
"And I know there's a lot of cross-party consensus around some of the actions that the Scottish government is taking forward to tackle violence against women and girls."
Police Scotland has apologised for how the original inquiry was handled by what was then Strathclyde Police.
In a statement released after Packer's conviction, the force said: "Emma Caldwell, her family and many other victims, were let down by policing in 2005. For that we are sorry.
"A significant number of women and girls who showed remarkable courage to speak up at that time also did not get the justice and support they needed and deserved from Strathclyde Police."
You can listen to the podcast series Who Killed Emma? on BBC Sounds.
