Former world snooker champion Graeme Dott has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of sexually abusing two children in Scotland.
Key Highlights
- Former world snooker champion Graeme Dott has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of sexually abusing two children in Scotland.
- The 49-year-old was convicted at the High Court in Glasgow over offences involving a girl and a boy between 1993 and 2010.
- Dott, who won the 2006 World Snooker Championship, denied all charges but was found guilty following trial.
- Judge Lord Harrower said Dott’s conduct showed features associated with grooming and amounted to a gross breach of trust.
- The court heard that the female victim was about nine years old when the abuse began, while the male victim was approximately eight.
The 49-year-old Scot was convicted at the High Court in Glasgow over offences involving a girl and a boy between 1993 and 2010.
Dott, who won the World Snooker Championship in 2006, had denied the charges but was found guilty following a trial.
Sentencing him at the High Court in Edinburgh, Judge Lord Harrower said Dott had deprived his victims of a significant part of their childhood and that his conduct displayed features associated with grooming.
The judge said both victims were vulnerable beyond their ages and that Dott had used treats and activities to disguise the abuse.
The court heard that the abuse of the girl began when she was about nine years old. Dott was aged 16 or 17 at the time. About a decade later, a second victim, a boy who was approximately eight years old, was also abused.
Lord Harrower said Dott warned the children that they would not be believed if they disclosed what had happened.
He said the victims had experienced fear, shame and anger as a result of the abuse, with the effects continuing into their adulthood and affecting their mental health.
The judge described Dott’s conduct as a gross breach of trust. However, Dott maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings.
The court heard that social work assessments considered him to present a below-average risk of reoffending, but the judge said his continued denial of the offences meant he could not give credit for remorse.
The seven-year sentence was backdated to August 24, when Dott was remanded in custody. He will also remain on the sex offenders register for the rest of his life.
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During the trial, the female victim, now in her 40s, told the court that Dott had touched her inappropriately, exposed himself and subjected her to other sexual acts when she was a child.
She said Dott would sometimes use games and gifts as part of his interaction with her, including giving her a teddy bear with a love heart.
The woman previously spoke to police about the allegations in 2001, but no charges were brought at the time. She provided a new statement to police in 2025.
The male victim, now in his 20s, told the court that the abuse began around the time Dott won his world championship title in 2006.
He said Dott abused him when he was about eight, including during incidents at a home in South Lanarkshire and in a car.
The victim also said Dott gave him crisps, fizzy drinks and, on one occasion, £50, which Dott later accused him of stealing after his parents discovered he had the money.
