Man paid £100,000 compensation after being wrongfully arrested

Police Scotland have been forced to pay out £100,000 in compensation to a man who was wrongfully arrested and sent to prison on remand.

Gary Webb, from Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries and Galloway, was detained in 2015 and spent three nights in a cell, followed by a further three nights in Addiewell Prison.

Officers arrested Mr Webb by mistake and had a warrant to arrest a different man.

Despite being shown Mr Webb’s passport, driving licence and photos of him as proof of mistaken identity, they decided to arrest him after holding up a photo of the suspect next to his face.

The 60-year-old said his life had been “completely trashed” by the experience.

"I was at home with my wife then being held in cuffs with no-one believing who I was and facing the worst kind of criminal charges imaginable," he told The Sunday Post.

"I thought I was going insane. How could no-one believe I was me?"

Mr Webb was eventually released without any explanation or apology. He then made a formal complaint for wrongful arrest.

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Two years later his complaint was rejected by an internal police investigation and recorded as a "quality of service issue".

But after he complained to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC), five police officers were arrested.

They were then investigated for criminal neglect of duty and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

A further two-year investigation followed after which the Crown Office said none of the five officers would face prosecution.

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Police Scotland were said to have paid Mr Webb around £100,000 in damages.

Mr Webb added: "I experienced things I should never have had to. I had to leave my work as my mental health was affected by everything.

"The Pirc did a fantastic job and left no stone unturned during its investigation, so without them and my own legal team I wouldn't be where I am now.

"But Police Scotland and its behaviour has been utterly despicable.

"They clearly know of wrongdoing or they wouldn't have paid damages."

Yahoo News UK has contacted Police Scotland for comment.