Who Is Graeme Dott? Snooker Abuse Trial

Graeme Dott is a Scottish professional snooker player who won the World Snooker Championship in 2006. Dott was charged in 2025 with historical child sex offences involving a girl and a boy who were both of primary-school age when the abuse occurred. Following a five-day trial at the High Court in Glasgow in August 2026, a jury found Dott guilty on both counts of lewd, indecent and libidinous behaviour. His sentencing is scheduled for September 29, 2026, at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Graeme Dott Charges And Suspension

Dott Charged With Historical Child Sex Offences In April 2025. Scottish prosecutors charged Dott with offences involving two children. The first charge concerned abuse of a girl in the Glasgow area between 1993 and 1996, beginning when she was around 10 years old. A second charge involved a boy who was around seven when the alleged abuse began and covered conduct between 2006 and 2010. [Sky News]

Court Papers Accused Dott Of Sexual Conduct Toward Both Children. Prosecutors alleged Dott engaged in repeated lewd, indecent and libidinous behaviour toward both victims, including inappropriate touching and other sexual conduct on multiple occasions. The allegations involving the girl were centered in Glasgow, while the abuse involving the boy occurred at locations in South Lanarkshire and in a vehicle. [Sky Sports]

WPBSA Suspended Dott From Professional Snooker. The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association suspended Dott on April 9, 2025, because of the pending High Court case. The suspension prevented him from competing in the 2025 World Championship qualifiers. [WPBSA]

Dott Appeared At Glasgow High Court And Was Released On Bail. Dott appeared at the High Court in Glasgow on April 16, 2025. His bail was continued as the criminal proceedings moved forward. [The Independent]

Dott Pleaded Not Guilty And Said Allegations Were Fabricated. At a later court hearing, defense lawyer Euan Dow entered not-guilty pleas to both charges and told the court that Dott maintained the accusations were fabricated and untrue. His trial was scheduled for August 2026. [The Independent]

Allegations Involving Female Victim

Woman Told Jury Dott Began Abusing Her When She Was A Child. The first victim, now a woman in her 40s, testified that Dott sexually abused her repeatedly while she was of primary-school age during the 1990s. She described multiple separate incidents occurring over several years. [The Independent]

Victim Said Abuse Began With Inappropriate Touching During Piggyback Ride. She testified that one of the earliest incidents occurred when Dott offered her a piggyback ride and sexually touched her over her clothing. Prosecutors later cited the detail as part of what they argued was a pattern of escalating abuse. [The Irish News]

Woman Described Sexual “Guessing Game” Dott Used During Abuse. The victim testified that Dott proposed a game in which she was asked to guess what he was doing while he exposed himself and sexually touched her. She said similar abuse happened on more than one occasion. [The Irish News]

Victim Said Dott Told Her Not To Reveal The Abuse. The woman told jurors that Dott instructed her not to tell anyone about what he was doing to her. She said the abuse left her ashamed and unable to fully disclose what had happened for years. [The Times]

Woman Had Previously Reported Allegations To Police In 2001. Trial reporting said the victim originally spoke to police about Dott in 2001 but no charges followed at that time. Investigators contacted her again in 2024 before prosecutors eventually brought the 2025 case. [The Scottish Sun]

Allegations Involving Male Victim

Man Said Dott Began Abusing Him When He Was Around Eight. The second victim, now in his late 20s, testified that the abuse began shortly after Dott won the World Snooker Championship in 2006, when the boy was approximately eight years old. [Belfast Telegraph]

Victim Described Repeated Sexual Abuse During Showers. The man testified that a significant amount of the abuse occurred while he was showering. He said Dott would enter partially or completely undressed, wash him and sexually touch him. [The Irish News]

Man Said Dott Also Abused Him Inside A Car. The victim described additional incidents inside a vehicle in which Dott kissed him and pressed his body against him. He said Dott expected him to comply with what he wanted. [The Irish News]

Victim Said Dott Used Gifts And Money As Rewards. The man testified that Dott sometimes gave him money, sweets, drinks and other items after incidents of abuse. He told the court he now viewed those gifts as a method Dott used to reward his compliance. [The Irish News]

Graeme Dott Trial

Dott Went On Trial At Glasgow High Court In August 2026. The five-day trial began at the High Court in Glasgow on August 18 before Lord Harrower. Both victims testified about the abuse they said occurred when they were children. [The Independent]

Dott Took Witness Stand And Denied Ever Abusing Children. Giving evidence in his own defense, Dott said there was “absolutely no way” he had sexually abused either child. He described the accusations as disgusting, denied inappropriate contact with the girl and disputed that he had ever been alone with the boy in the circumstances described. [The Irish News]

Defense Challenged Reliability Of Both Victims. Dott’s attorney Euan Dow argued that there were flaws and inconsistencies in the evidence and urged jurors not to regard either witness as sufficiently credible or reliable to convict his client. [Sky Sports]

Prosecutor Said Similar Accounts From Two Victims Supported The Case. Advocate depute Lindsey Dalziel argued that jurors should consider the similarities between the independently reported accounts of the two victims. She said prosecutors believed Dott had taken advantage of access to vulnerable children for his own sexual gratification. [Sky Sports]

Graeme Dott Guilty Verdict

Jury Found Dott Guilty Of Abusing Both Children. On August 24, 2026, jurors at the High Court in Glasgow returned guilty verdicts on both counts of lewd, indecent and libidinous behaviour. The convictions covered repeated abuse of the girl between 1993 and 1996 and the boy between 2006 and 2010. [STV News]

Court Found Dott Sexually Abused Two Primary-School-Age Children. Following the verdict, the victims were no longer merely complainants in an unresolved case: the jury’s findings established that Dott had sexually abused both children on multiple occasions. [The Irish News]

Guilty Verdict Followed Several Hours Of Jury Deliberation. Lord Harrower sent the jury out on August 24 after instructing members that the Crown had to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt and that they should consider all admissible evidence before reaching their decision. The jury later convicted Dott on both charges. [The Irish News]

Graeme Dott Sentencing

Dott Sentencing Scheduled For September 29, 2026. Lord Harrower deferred sentencing after the guilty verdict so that the court could obtain a justice social work report. Dott is scheduled to return to the High Court in Edinburgh on September 29 for sentencing. [The Scottish Sun]

Graeme Dott Snooker Career

Dott Won World Snooker Championship In 2006. Dott defeated Peter Ebdon at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre to win the 2006 World Championship. He also reached the world final in 2004 and 2010 and climbed as high as No. 2 in the world rankings. [Sky News]

Suspension Effectively Removed Dott From Professional Competition During Criminal Case. Dott remained suspended after the WPBSA acted in April 2025 and did not compete while the High Court proceedings were pending. [WPBSA]