Kevin Guthrie: Sunshine on Leith actor jailed for three years for sexual assault

Fantastic Beasts actor will be indefinitely listed on the sex offenders register

Isobel Lewis
Friday 14 May 2021 12:26 BST
Guthrie in 2016
Guthrie in 2016

Actor Kevin Guthrie has been jailed for three years for sexual assault.

The Scottish actor, who is best known for playing Ally in the 2013 musical film Sunshine on Leith, was convicted in April of sexually assaulting a woman at the flat of fellow actor Scott Reid in Glasgow on 30 September 2017.

The pair had been due to meet the woman at a bar, until Reid received a call from a taxi driver asking to collect her as she appeared unwell. Sheriff Tom Hughes later said that she believed her drink had been spiked elsewhere.

The woman was taken back to Reid’s flat, with the plaintiff telling the court that she was groped and assaulted multiple times by Guthrie, who would stop when Reid entered the room.

While Guthrie denied the charge, alleging that he had “helped” the woman after she felt ill, the jury at Glasgow Sheriff Court heard that his DNA had been found inside her underwear after the assault. He was convicted in April, with his sentencing taking place on Friday 14 May.

As well as being given a three-year sentence, the actor – who appeared in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and Netflix series The English Game – will be indefinitely listed on the sex offenders register.

Sheriff Hughes told Guthrie: “You had an educational background and worked extremely hard to get a part in acting in acclaimed films. The court must show that women can be protected from domestic sexual offences and those who do should suffer serious consequences.

“The offence you have been convicted of caused distress and consequences to the young woman involved in this case. You committed this crime in a position of trust… The jury accepted that you committed these heinous crimes and the only appropriate sentence is imprisonment.”

Following his conviction last month, Guthrie was dropped from the BBC Scotland series Inside Central Station, with all episodes in which he featured being removed from BBC iPlayer.

If you’ve been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support: www.rapecrisis.org.uk

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