Sammy 'The Bear' Ralston, the notorious ringleader of the 1987 Peterhead Prison siege, once held jail guards hostage in a six-day rooftop standoff. Ralston, 62, was central to the September 1987 riot that began when inmate Malcolm 'Malkie' Leggat stabbed a prison officer and threw hot fat over him after being placed on a minor report.
Rooftop Takeover and Hostage Crisis
Ralston, then serving a six-year sentence for armed robbery, joined other high-security inmates in the uprising. They took over the prison's D Wing roof space, building barricades and booby traps, and held prison guards Jackie Stuart and Bill Florence hostage. Balaclavas were made from bandages, windows smashed, fires started, and makeshift weapons brandished as prisoners controlled the wing.
Bill, who had been stabbed and burnt, was released after a day, but Jackie was kept. Most prisoners surrendered quickly, but Ralston and three others held out. Jackie, then 56 and a grandfather of six, was stripped, beaten, and paraded along the roof like a dog on a chain. He was forced to lie on the floor while beaten with table legs, then moved to an attic area.
Prisoner's Perspective and Brutality
Ralston later claimed, "It might sound stupid but we treated him well. We let him send a letter to his wife – something we weren't allowed to do. I told him things had to change in the prison system as men were going to end up dead." Huge banners made from bed sheets were displayed as Scotland watched. Jackie was stabbed three times and his pockets filled with lighter fluid as prisoners threatened to set him alight.
Ralston admitted the prisoners were scared and couldn't back down. He said, "We got radios from the guards so prison negotiators were able to communicate with us. They kept telling us we should come down because we were only making things worse for ourselves. But that made us scared, so we waited it out."
SAS Intervention and Aftermath
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sent in the SAS, which had never been deployed in mainland Britain for a civilian issue. Within three minutes, stun grenades and CS gas overcame the rebels, and Jackie was freed. Ralston received an extra seven years and was released in 2010.
Eight months earlier, Ralston had been involved in a similar riot at HMP Barlinnie in Glasgow. That riot, sparked by claims of brutality against Ralston, saw five jail staff taken hostage and banners reading 'Sammy Ralston was tortured'. After five days, the siege ended; nine men stood trial, and three received a total of 22 years.
Over the decades, Ralston accumulated further convictions, including a 12-year sentence in 1997 for armed shop robbery and an eight-year sentence in August 2024 for attempted murder of a neighbour in Glasgow's Shettleston area.
