Family of father raped and murdered by sadistic killers questions attacker’s years of freedom

The family of a young father who was raped and murdered just days after the birth of his daughter is wondering how one of his killers was able to remain at large for more than two years.

Calum Simpson, 24, was victimised by Cameron Allan and his partner Dylan Brister at a house party. They drugged and tied up their victim and then filmed their sadistic sexual abuse as she lay dying.

But after his arrest for murder, Allan was released on bail by a sheriff, committed further crimes and is also accused of holding up a sign at a demonstration saying he wanted to cut people’s heads off.

After Calum’s two killers were finally found guilty of murder on Friday, his relatives expressed their pain at seeing Allan free.

Calum’s mother Sheree, 50, said: “I will never be the same person again. A part of me died that day.”

“When I see his children now, they look so much like him and that gives me strength, but I can’t accept that my boy is gone.

“The fact that they were out in public and could do that… I don’t understand it. The fact that one of them wasn’t even locked up when the trial took place was horrific.

“When I heard they were convicted and handcuffed, I just broke down.”

Bobbie Cowan, 26, mother of Calum’s three children, said: “What was outside – that’s what has taken me over the last few years.”

“We have no idea why he was released and not taken into custody.

“He was able to come and go from court because he was released on bail and that was really tough.

“If there hadn’t been a police officer on site, we would have been constantly bumping into him during the trial.”

Monsters Allan, 21, and Brister, 27, drugged and raped Calum, from Methil, Fife, at a party on November 2 and 3, 2021, and filmed the attack on their mobile phones.

As the Sunday Mail can reveal, Allan was not taken into custody after initially being charged and appearing in court on February 1, 2022 for murder, and just weeks later he reoffended.

On February 16, 2022, he horrified a hotel worker in Dunfermline, where he lived, by asking if she wanted to take part in a porn film he was planning to make with another man.

She complained to the police and turned Allan in, who was arrested and appeared before Dunfermline Sheriff Court on 19 January 2023 for breach of the peace.

But even though Allan had already been charged with rape and murder, he was released. The sheriff imposed a restraining order and an 18-month suspended sentence on him.

It is also alleged that Allan appeared at a rally in support of transgender equality in Glasgow on January 21, 2023.

He is the focus of a police report about a man matching his description. He was photographed holding a sign saying he wanted to “behead Terfs” with an image of a guillotine next to him.

“Terf” is a derogatory term standing for “trans-exclusive radical feminist” and is used to describe people who do not support gender identity reform.

Conservative MP Murdo Fraser was among those who reported the violent sign to police, but officers said they were unable to identify the man holding the sign at the time.

Now Fraser said the case raised troubling questions for police and the justice system: why Allan was not taken into custody despite being accused of murder, or why he reoffended months later, or why officers took no action after being told he was photographed holding a sign inciting violence.

The MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife said: “Shortly after I reported this protester to the police, people contacted me saying he was a man known to the police called Cameron Allan.

“I did not give the name ‘Cameron Allan’ to the police, but I heard that others did.

“Police later said they had not been able to identify the person in the photo.

“It’s pretty clear that it’s him. If they had been given his name, I’m sure they would have questioned him. If they hadn’t, it would have been a serious dereliction of duty, particularly because he was out on bail for murder.

“Given that this is an individual who is already out on bail and awaiting charges for a gruesome murder, one has to wonder what on earth the police were up to that they did not take immediate and serious action against this individual.

“The other aspect is, why was someone who was released on bail for murder allowed to continue to be at large and reoffend despite already having another conviction?”

Calum, who was a stranger to his killers, died from alcohol poisoning and the drug etizolam, which is often found in “street Valium” but is up to ten times stronger than diazepam.

He was visited by the couple who were looking for someone to live out their sick fantasies with, and had KO slipped into his drink.

Assistant solicitor Angela Gray told Edinburgh High Court on Friday: “You administered drugs to him for your sexual gratification. The administration of drugs was malicious and reckless and you showed total disregard for the safety and life of Calum Simpson.”

In the recordings of the attack, Allan can be heard telling his accomplice: “At least he’s still breathing.”

The two have been remanded in custody and face life sentences when they appear in court again next month.

Brister was already in prison for another matter and his picture cannot be shown for legal reasons.

Bobbie, also from Methil, said she wanted Calum to be remembered as the “incredible father” he was to his three children Calum, eight, Mirren, six, and Lyla, two, and his stepdaughter Romi, five.

She said: “As a father he was a funny father, he was always laughing and joking.

“We were really looking forward to the birth of our little one, but she was in the hospital for a few days, so he could only spend a few days with her.

“She was born prematurely – she was actually not due until November 11th, and that’s how she got to meet him.

“He worked as a bartender and waiter and had a lot of fun doing it. He spoke to people very confidently and liked to play. We did a lot of things with the children and spent a lot of time outdoors.

“It was pretty hard for us. I know the kids will have to hear about it in the future and it’s hanging over me too, but I want him to be remembered for the good person he was and not for the grim end of his life and that one incident.”

Through tears, mother Sheree added: “He was my only one, my boy. He was so cheeky, so funny.”

“He loved his children and Bobbie so much.”

Scottish police would not answer any of the Sunday Mail’s questions about whether they had questioned Allan about the “Decapitate terfs” sign, but said: “Extensive enquiries have been carried out and no one has been arrested to date. However, the case remains open and any new information will be fully investigated.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Department of Justice said: “In deciding whether or not to grant bail to an accused in a particular case, members of the judiciary follow the legal criteria set out by Parliament, taking into account any relevant previous convictions, submissions by the defence and any objections by the Crown which may justify a refusal of bail.”

“Each case depends on the specific facts and circumstances, and of course the decision can be appealed by the prosecution or the defense.”

Don’t miss the latest news from Scotland and beyond – subscribe to our daily newsletter Here.