Glasgow who couple tormented foster children in 'house of horrors' jailed

An elderly couple convicted of horrific historical abuse towards six of their foster children at their “house of horrors” have been jailed for 30 months each.

Douglas Daniel, 80, and Barbara Daniel, 75, tormented the children, aged between four and 14, at the property in Glasgow’s Parkhead.

They used punishment methods, including forcing some of the kids into an animal pen, making a child stand with geese who pecked her skin, and ordering another to bathe in a bird bath.

Some of the children went hungry, and one recalled being fed cow tongue meant for pet ferrets.

The Daniels, now of Kent, denied the accusations, which spanned between 1986 and 1991.

They were found guilty of six charges of cruel and unnatural treatment of a child at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

The Daniels were jailed for 30 months each at sentencing.

Sheriff Louise Arrol KC told them: “These children were removed from their primary caregivers and given to you as an emergency placement for their safety.

“What we learned was that these children were unsafe in their placement with you. The abuse you perpetrated on them was emotional, physical and psychological.

“Your treatment of these children was to instil fear and terror, which is nothing short of barbaric.

“The lifelong effect is unquantifiable. These children were in desperate need of nurture, care, and love.

“Depriving them of this has resulted in a myriad of life changes. The impact on each of them is absolutely clear.

“I commend their bravery in coming forward to relive their life-altering trauma.

“Their victim impact statements describe how the abuse suffered has shaped every part of their lives negatively. The effects are still enduring.

“In short, you robbed them of their childhood. You were in a position of trust, apparently safeguarding vulnerable children.

“More than that, you chose to act in the role of parent for these children.

“The behaviour you engaged in towards the children in your care was clearly degrading and humiliating.”

Abusers fostered 100 children

The court heard that the Daniels started fostering the first of their 100 children in 1986.

A 48-year-old woman told how she and her younger sister, then aged nine and four, went to live with them.

She recalled an incident when her sister, who was afraid of chickens, was held in a coop at the back of the property.

“They locked the door from the outside,” the woman said.

“I tried to get her as my sister was screaming.”

She added that while this went on, Barbara Daniel pulled her hair and helped Douglas Daniel close their door.

Prosecutor Ryan Watson told jurors in his evidence: “The four-year-old was desperate to get out and was being pushed back inside.

“She was petrified, screaming to get out, and she says to this day she cannot take her own children to a farm due to that experience.”

A 53-year-old woman stated in her evidence that Barbara Daniel made her stand with geese as a form of punishment.

She said: “When I spoke back to the Daniels or Barbara would get me to eat food that I disliked, geese eggs.

“If I refused, part of my punishment was that I would be put outside where the geese were running free.

“The geese would attack you. She would pull you and shake you. Barbara would put you in front of the geese.

“The geese could tell you were scared of them and attack you.”

She stated that she was left with red marks “that would not go away” as the geese would nip her skin.

One of the women told how she was also made to bathe outside.

The same woman recalled being served a Sunday roast before it was taken away by Barbara Daniel.

Mr Watson added: “They then gave her cow’s tongue, which was due for the ferrets.

“She remembers it was the most disgusting thing she’d ever seen. She recalled that it was grey and saw the taste buds of the tongue.”

Some of the victims told jurors that they were not fed by the Daniels. Another victim claimed she ate from the kitchen floor.

Mr Watson said: “She was looked on as the same as the dogs by the Daniels.”

A 47-year-old man who stayed with the Daniels told jurors that Barbara was seen as the “boss” while Douglas was a “scary physical man”.

The man recalled instances where he was forced to stand outside in the heat against a wall.

Douglas also attacked one of the girls by slapping them and ordered a victim to strip naked to check for injuries.

Barbara Daniel’s violence included hitting one of the girls with a wooden spoon and pulling a victim by her hair.

The victims told jurors that their personal freedoms were restricted by being locked in their rooms and the windows being alarmed.

A woman recalled not being able to go to the toilet alone with the door locked.

One of the victims stated that she was only given one ply of toilet paper to use.

Mr Watson said: “They punished these children and showed no compassion or care. They were the real animals.

“This was supposed to be a safe home, a respite from the troubles in the other aspects of their life. The Daniels did not offer them that basic, simple and expected need.”

Duncan McPhie, defending Douglas Daniel, told the sentencing that his client continues to profess his innocence.

Alistair Sloan, defending Barbara Daniel, accepted his client’s position that she was the full-time caregiver.

Procurator Fiscal Fraser Gibson, of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “Douglas and Barbara Daniel inflicted prolonged and degrading abuse on children who had been entrusted to their care.

“These vulnerable young people were placed with them in the belief that they would be protected, supported and given stability.

“Instead, these young people were met with cruelty, humiliation, violence and fear.

“The actions of these foster carers were not only criminal, but also a profound betrayal of trust that should never have occurred.

“The Crown treats all allegations of non‑recent child abuse with the utmost seriousness, and no matter how much time has passed, we remain committed to ensuring survivors are heard and perpetrators held accountable.”