2 Pedophiles Die In Scotland Prison Within 24-Hour Period

Investigations have been launched after two inmates of a prison in Edinburgh, Scotland, died within 24 hours of each other earlier this month.

Richard McCormick and Alexander Morgan, who were both serving sentences for sex crimes involving children, passed away on Dec. 17 and Dec. 18, respectively, while in custody at HMP Edinburgh, also known as Saughton Prison, Daily Record reported.

Probes have been launched into the inmates' deaths by Mandatory Fatal Accident Inquiries (FAIs). Reports were submitted by Scottish Prison Service (SPS) bosses at Saughton to the Procurator Fiscal, Edinburgh Live reported.

The two men's causes of death have not been revealed. It was not clear if the two knew each other.

McCormick, 74, was arrested at Heathrow Airport in 2014, eight years after some of his victims came forward.

The former offshore worker preyed on children as young as 3 years old at homes across the Falkirk and Denny areas in Scotland over a period of 20 years before his arrest. He was apprehended after banking information showed he had actively made transactions in Qatar and Thailand.

McCormick began serving his eight-year sentence in 2016.

The other inmate, Morgan, 73, was originally sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2015 for several offenses, including the rape of a young girl in the Scottish town of Paisley.

Morgan was handed an additional eight years behind bars in April after he was found guilty of attacking two other young girls in Paisley and Blantyre in 1995. One of the victims was just 11 years old when the attack occurred.

The additional sentence was set to take effect after the end of his original prison term.

“Richard McCormick, a prisoner from HMP Edinburgh has died on December 17, 2021,” a statement from the SPS read. “He was sentenced at Edinburgh High Court in 2016.”

“Alexander Morgan, a prisoner from HMP Edinburgh died on December 18, 2021,” the service added. “He was sentenced at Glasgow High Court in 2015.”

SPS stated that Scotland police have been informed of the deaths and that the incidents have been reported to the Procurator Fiscal, a public prosecutor who investigates sudden and suspicious deaths and conducts fatal accident inquiries in Scotland.

Fatal accident probes will be held “in due course,” the SPS added.