Police officer passed vetting despite rape allegations and criminal record
PC Alan Greer was allowed to join Police Scotland in 2009 despite vetting staff knowing about two prior complaints of criminal behaviour against women, including a formal police caution.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
New revelations have emerged in the case of PC Alan Greer, a former Police Scotland officer who was exposed as a violent serial rapist last month. The officer, who took his own life while under investigation for rape and sexual assault, passed police vetting checks in 2009 despite having two prior reports of criminal behaviour against women on his record. At the time, the vetting unit of the then Strathclyde Police was aware of these reports but allowed him to join the force anyway.
The first incident occurred in 2002 when Greer was investigated by Strathclyde Police for making inappropriate silent phone calls to women. Three years later, in 2005, he was investigated by the Metropolitan Police for similar behaviour against a woman in London, which resulted in a formal police caution. Despite this caution, Greer was accepted into the police force in 2009.
After Greer was unmasked by the BBC last month as a dangerous rapist with at least nine victims, Police Scotland initially insisted there had been no missed opportunities or red flags that could have stopped his offending sooner. However, the force has now moved to clarify its earlier position. It said it had provided answers to questions relating to Greer's offending during the course of his police career and did not believe it had been answering questions about his police vetting records. The force stated that questions about vetting would be examined by an external review, that it could not disclose information that could be harmful to victims, and that Greer would not pass vetting by today's standards.
Craig Naylor, who led a review into Police Scotland's vetting processes in 2023, said Greer should never have been allowed to join the force. Asked directly whether the failure to block Greer's entry was a missed opportunity, Naylor replied simply: "Yes." The BBC's investigation has raised serious questions about the effectiveness of police vetting procedures at the time.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Only on one channel | ||
| A police officer was charged with murder over the death of Chris Kaba. | Not reported by BBC One | |
| Alan Greer was allowed to join the police in 2009 despite the vetting unit knowing about his offending. | Not reported by Sky News | |
| Alan Greer was investigated twice before joining the police, in 2002 and 2005. | Not reported by Sky News | |
| Police Scotland initially said there were no missed opportunities, but later clarified that its answers related to Greer's career offending, not his vetting. | Not reported by Sky News | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Sky News did not cover the Alan Greer story in the provided transcripts. Their coverage focused entirely on a separate, long-form investigation into the Metropolitan Police firearms unit MO19, detailing the risks and pressures faced by armed officers after the Chris Kaba shooting and the acquittal of PC Martin Blake. The tone was explanatory and sympathetic to officers' concerns about being charged with murder, and the content served as a promotional trailer for a documentary.
- “I don't come to work to be charged with murder and sent to prison, you know, so...”
- “We don't get paid any extra to do what we do. There's no bonus payment, there's no... There's nothing.”
- “Why risk getting charged for murder when you can just sit in an office somewhere and get paid the same?”
BBC ONE West exclusively covered the Alan Greer story. Its reporting focused on the failure of police vetting processes, revealing that Greer had two prior complaints (including a formal caution) before joining the force, directly contradicting Police Scotland's earlier claims of no missed opportunities. The tone was investigative and critical, highlighting a systemic failure to protect women.
- “Police Scotland told the BBC there were no chances to stop him sooner.”
- “At this point, and we will keep it under review, there is nothing to suggest that there have been any missed opportunities over the years.”
- “My view is that he should never have got in at that point.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.