Rapist Isla Bryson claims she is a victim of hate crime

Transgender rapist Isla Bryson claims she was the victim of hate crimes by prison staff.

Bryson, 32, was jailed in February 2023 after being convicted of raping two women, crimes committed while he was living as a man, Adam Graham.

After being convicted at the High Court in Glasgow, Bryson was sent to Cornton Vale women’s prison, causing a political scandal for the SNP, before later moving to the men’s prison.

Bryson was sentenced to eight years at the High Court in Edinburgh, with a further three years suspended.

The sex offender claimed to have received an apology after complaining about being “mistreated” and called “son” by a female staff member in a handwritten letter to the Sunday Mail.

Bryson was convicted at the High Court in Glasgow in January 2023.

The former DJ had first appeared as Adam Graham, but began identifying himself as a woman while on bail and appeared in court under the name Isla Bryson.

Bryson wrote: “Just dealing with transphobia from the staff.

“I was told by an employee in Edinburgh that the MSP has instructed governors to treat trans women entering the SPS (Scottish Prison Service) as men.

“It’s disgusting and a hate crime.”

The letter added: “They refuse to distribute feminine toiletries or make-up.

“I’m currently using blockers. I have breasts. I don’t sound like a man anymore.”

Bryson was convicted of raping a woman in Clydebank in 2016 and another in nearby Drumchapel in 2019, but insisted: “I only like men.”

Bryson admitted having a five-month relationship with a fellow inmate who was jailed for six years for pedophilia and drugs in 2019, as well as a three-week relationship with an inmate named Colin.

The letter added: “I want to make this clear: I don’t like women, I only like men.”

Natalie Beal, governor of HMP Glenochil men’s prison, wrote to Bryson last month following the incident in which a staff member called Bryson “son” and said the SPS officer immediately “apologized after realizing his mistake”, reported the newspaper.

The letter said that during the investigation Bryson was unable to provide the date, time or name of the officers involved in either incident, and that no witnesses had been found, the Sunday Mail reported.

Ms. Beal said in the letter that a separate, unclear incident involving a metal detector was an oversight by a prison guard who “may not have realized” at the time that Bryson was a trans inmate.

It was reported that Ms Beal added: “We apologize if you felt disrespected, but we do not believe this would have been the intention of the officer involved.”

The SPS has previously said it is committed to a culture of equal opportunities and diversity and was reported to have a variety of clothing, including unisex, suitable for individual prisoners, the Sunday Mail reported.

Rhona Hotchkiss, a former governor of Cornton Vale, told the Sunday Mail: “Misgendering is not a hate crime and that has become clear since the silly hate crime law came into force.

“People have done it left, right and center and have not been prosecuted.

“Also last year Humza Yousaf himself said ‘he’s on it’ to Adam Graham Isla Bryson, so I would suggest that if the SPS think this is a crime they should discuss it with Mr Yousaf and see what he thinks. ”

A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individuals.”