Graeme Dott jailed seven years for child sex abuse

Former world snooker champion Graeme Dott has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being found guilty of sexually abusing two primary school-age children. Dott, 49, appeared at the High Court in Edinburgh on Tuesday where he received his sentence.

The judge, Lord Harrower, told Dott he had "robbed the complainers of a significant part of their childhood". The court heard that Dott subjected a girl and a boy to multiple incidents of abuse. The girl was targeted between 1993 and 1996, while the boy was abused between 2006 and 2010.

Dott was found guilty of two counts of lewd, indecent and libidinous behaviour following a five-day trial. During the proceedings, jurors heard from one victim, a woman now in her 40s, who stated Dott had sexually abused her on multiple occasions. The second victim, a man now in his late 20s, also testified to being sexually abused by Dott on multiple occasions.

The court heard that Dott exposed himself in front of both children, touched them inappropriately, and kissed them. He had denied the charges but was convicted by the jury. Lord Harrower imposed a backdated sentence of seven years, describing Dott’s behaviour as a “gross violation of trust”.

Graeme Dott turned professional in 1994 and won the World Snooker Championship in 2006, defeating Peter Ebdon in the final. He also reached the final in 2004 and 2010, but was defeated by Ronnie O’Sullivan and Neil Robertson respectively. Following his conviction, Dott’s name was removed from World Snooker’s Hall of Fame. He was remanded in custody and his name has been added to the sex offenders register.