“A 20-minute date with a Tinder predator destroyed years of my life”

She is one of several victims who have called on Police Scotland to apologize to those who tried to report it.

Nadia, now 34, and Harkins, 38, match Seven years ago on Tinder.

They exchanged messages and a few weeks later decided to go out to dinner in Glasgow.

For Nadia, the first red flag appeared when she picked Harkins up at her apartment.

He answered the door wearing sweatpants and a tank top, but said he was too tired to go outside. He suggested we stay at his apartment and order takeout.

“This is where things get weird,” Nadia recalls.

“I went inside. The apartment was empty. There was no furniture. The living room was completely empty except for a TV in a few boxes.”

Harkins suggested Nadia make vodka. When he stopped drinking alcohol and poured himself a Diet Coke, his mood changed.

“It was like I was having a tantrum in my head,” he explains.

“He looked at me as if to say, ‘Who do you think you are? Why are you helping yourself?'” I was a little nervous and poured my glass to the brim. When I turned around, I spilled my Coca-Cola. ”

He had a crazy look on his face. I said something like, “You’re so clumsy and don’t respect my property. You’re a clown.”

“I remember thinking, ‘Are you serious?’ It was laminate flooring.”

“I said, ‘Here, I’m leaving.’ And he pointed at the door and started swearing.”

“I was scared. I thought he was going to come after me. I got in the car, locked the doors and that was it,” Nadia said.

“I thought this was the end, but things got much worse.”

“You can’t imagine how much that 20-minute interaction with this man impacted my life.”

This rejection appears to have been a major trigger for Harkins, who began harassing Nadia with phone calls and messages as soon as she left.

The first person said: “How dare you walk away from a date with me?”

As the situation escalated over the next few hours, Nadia claimed Harkins threw a petrol bomb at her home, threatened to kill her and attack her father.

He also repeatedly insulted her with comments about her appearance.

This had a devastating effect on Nadia’s self-esteem, which she was struggling to regain after going through a difficult period in her life.

“I got the message that I was a fat cow,” she says.

“That I was a fraud. That I looked like a pig. That I was wearing too much makeup. That lasted all night. I had a headache from crying so much. At 6 o’clock in the morning, he was still insulting me.”

“I remember looking in the mirror and feeling ashamed of myself.” He knew I was losing weight and going to the gym. “Just when I thought I was at my best, he literally took it away from me.”

The day after her appointment, Nadia reported the threats and abuse to police. He also played a recording of a phone call from Harkins.

There, he is heard saying that he is going to go to his father’s house and drag him out and beat him.

“They told me there was nothing they could do for me,” Nadia recalls.

“They said there was no direct threat. If I did anything, please call them immediately.”

“No one accepted my statement. They didn’t want to help me. I shouted from the rooftops, ‘I can’t let this happen! They don’t know what he’s capable of! He’s threatening me!'”

“If they had done something then, they could have done a lot for the girls he harassed,” he points out.

Harkins continued to harass her long after the date ended. Nadia blocked his number, but more than a year later, she was still in contact with people she met on social media.

“The mental state this caused me, if it wasn’t for my daughter, I would have taken my life,” she says.

Harkins was convicted of 19 crimes against 10 women, including physical and sexual assault, and is serving a 12-year sentence.

He was initially accused of threatening and abusing Nadia and threatening her family.

As part of a plea deal, Harkins’ plea of ​​not guilty to the charges was granted and he pleaded guilty to travel fraud, fraudulent investment schemes and stealing more than 214,000 pounds ($282,000) from women by using his identity to obtain bank loans.

Ultimately, the police investigation was sparked by a woman who spoke to the media in a desperate attempt to expose Harkins and protect others.

The woman was also refused help by police when Harkins scammed her out of £3,247 (about $4,300) in fictitious holiday payments.

Her story was published in October 2019. The scope of Harkins’ crimes quickly became apparent, and police began a formal investigation.

Nadia and others who had filed charges in the past were contacted again and this time asked to submit evidence.

Harkins went to trial in 2024. Nadia learns a horrifying truth after reading the testimony of a woman who was raped by Mr. Harkins. It happened two months after I went on a bad date.

“That girl could have been saved,” he laments.

“They could have arrested him and she would never have had any contact with him.”

“It’s disgusting. That’s all I can say. It’s disgusting.”

Our investigation uncovered further alleged fraud committed by Harkins worth approximately £70,000 ($92,000).

The BBC understands that his victims were at least 30 women.

We reached out to Mr. Harkins in prison to ask about these allegations. he didn’t answer.

Chief Inspector Lindsay Laird led the police investigation into Harkins.

He said it was difficult to explain why the allegations were not investigated sooner.

“Each incident was reported at different stages, so they were not all reported at once, but in different parts of Police Scotland,” he explained.

“At the time, police had no complaints of physical or sexual abuse.”

“These are primarily financial matters and, if handled in isolation, would be considered a civil investigation.”

“I think it’s safe to say that police work has evolved a lot since those first complaints.”

Several women told the BBC they had reported physical assaults and sexual harassment in the years before the police investigation began.

Asked if Police Scotland would apologize to the victims who tried to report Mr Harkins, Ms Laird said: “I think that’s a very difficult question to answer.”

“I think they got a favorable outcome in court because of the investigation that was done.”

“We hope that with all the measures we have put in place since then, that experience will not be repeated.”

In response to these comments, Nadia said, “I know they tried hard when they decided to do something, but they should have acted sooner.”

“They’ve been doing this for years. It could have been avoided. They should apologize. They could have stopped it.”

Harkins was jailed last year, nearly five years after his first arrest. He was convicted thanks to the testimony of 10 women.

Nadia received a phone call informing her of the results.

“Those women accomplished more than you might think,” she says.

“People who may have met him now and in the future don’t have to. What they did was just incredible, extraordinary.”

The mother of two managed to regain her life and confidence, but the experience left a huge mark on her.

“It’s much better now,” he admits.

“I’m a completely different person and much more confident. I’m not afraid to speak up and I’ll never ignore red flags again.”

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