MAP Forum

Steven MacMillan, who sent sexual messages to a 13-year-old girl, has appealed against his sentence of 20 months.

A sick Scots dentist who bombarded a teenage girl with depraved sexual messages has launched an appeal against the length of his sentence.

Steven MacMillan, from Dalkeith in Midlothian, was jailed for 20 months and placed on the sex offenders' register for 10 years after contacting a 13-year-old from Newcastle on social media and sending her disturbing messages from February to March 2023.

The 53-year-old struck up a conversation with the child, who told him her age at the start.

The chat turned highly sexual and she sent him an image of herself performing a sex act. MacMillan started sending her a string of sickening voice notes on February 27 and 28.

In one message he told her: "When daddy asks you to do something you better do it or there will be trouble." And in another message he added: "Good girls do what they are told."

MacMillan's sexualised chats with the girl continued until March 6 when her mother discovered the horrifying messages.

She got in touch with an online paedophile vigilante group, who confronted him at his then home in Strathaven, Lanarkshire, and police were called in.

MacMillan appeared at Hamilton Sheriff Court and admitted communicating indecently with the youngster - who has had to receive counselling.

It has now been confirmed MacMillan has lodged an appeal against the length of his sentence.

Depute fiscal Scott O'Connor told the court at the time: "The complainer's mother confiscated her phone and observed numerous Snapchat notifications from various users and noted a user called Steve and enquired what she had been discussing.

"The complainer confirmed she had been involved in sexual communication and the mother opened the account and noted the voice notes on the device.

"She was concerned for the complainer and contacted an online child safety team who later attended the accused's home where police were also contacted and arrested the accused."

Eight voice notes of MacMillan making vile sexual remarks towards the girl were played to the court.

Alan Gravelle, defending, said: "Plainly the custodial threshold has been crossed standing the age of the victim and the graphic content of the communication.

"Many aspects of this case are difficult to rationalise and in many respects it remains inexplicable that he should fall into this two-week period of offending when he had the stability of lifestyle including marriage and children, a successful academic career that then turned into a successful professional career and the financial stability that comes with it."

Sheriff Dunipace told MacMillan: "The content of the communication was graphic and disturbing and they could leave no-one who heard them in any doubt of your intention when engaging with this child and hearing those conversations was harrowing and chilling.

"This was not a one-off but a part of a premeditated and sustained course of conduct where you sought to deprive her of her innocence for your depraved gratification."

The sheriff noted MacMillan had a "duty to protect" youngsters and jail was the only option to deter others from similar offending.

MacMillan, who qualified as a dentist in 1995, has been suspended from working in the profession by regulators since March 2023 and will remain suspended until at least December 31 this year.