# Police catch on-the-run child rapist who escaped prison staff while on escorted leave in city centre

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/police-catch-on-the-run-child-rapist-who-escaped-prison-staff-while-on-escorted-leave-in-city-centre/
- Published: 2026-08-08T10:00:07+00:00
- Updated: 2026-08-24T21:32:02+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16038093/Police-child-rapist-escaped-prison-escorted-city.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Geopolitics, Politics, UK, World

## Key points

- Escaped child rapist Cliff Lyons Dobbie recaptured after Perth manhunt
- He fled prison staff during escorted leave on Thursday
- Detained since 1990; no details given on how he escaped

## Summary

A convicted child rapist who absconded from prison staff during escorted leave in Perth city centre has been recaptured following a police manhunt. Cliff Lyons Dobbie, who has been detained since 1990 as a restricted patient, went missing on Thursday, prompting Police Scotland to appeal to the public not to approach him. He was found safe on Saturday, with officers confirming the search assisted by NHS Tayside had ended successfully.

Dobbie was jailed in 1990 for raping a 10-year-old girl in Glasgow and sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy in a field, and has since been held in secure facilities including the State Hospital in Carstairs. At the time of his disappearance, police described him as a white man of around 5ft 3in with a strong Glaswegian accent, last seen wearing a black baseball cap, ripped light blue jeans, a salmon-coloured golf shirt and carrying a black backpack. No details have been released about how he managed to escape his escorts, and NHS Tayside has declined to comment further, citing patient confidentiality.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.