Beast admitted raping me when I confronted him on his sick bed
Ex is jailed after brave Isabell challenges him over sickening attack 27 years ago
A BRAVE rape victim has told how she confronted her attacker and recorded his confession as he lay in a hospital bed.
John Harper, 56, admitted to Isabell Willmott, 43, that he sexually assaulted her more than 25 years ago.
Her extraordinary act of courage led to Harper’s conviction and sentencing over the crime he committed in 1993.
She has now decided to waive her right to anonymity and share her journey to justice.
Isabell was just 17 when vile Harper held a soldering iron at her neck. He then threatened to kill her before raping her.
When Harper pled guilty in court, Isabell said she was “hysterical”.
She added: “I was crying uncontrollably. I was terrified but it felt like, after all this time, I was finally being believed.”
Isabell met Harper when she was 16 and was married to him when the attack took place at a property in Hurlford, Ayrshire.
She said: “I was vulnerable,
BY TARA FITZPATRICK young and he took advantage of me. I’d grown up in care and I was looking for some stability and someone to care for me. John was my first serious relationship.”
Isabell, from Kilmarnock, recalled being “petrified” when Harper attacked her but didn’t go to the police until months later.
She said: “It took me a good while to leave his clutches.”
After confiding in a family friend, Isabell reported the rape but the case was not pursued.
She spoke to police again three years later and a report was filed to prosecutors. But there were no further proceedings “due to a lack of sufficiency”.
She said: “I felt like they were judging me. It was as if I had done something wrong and not him.”
In 2018, Isabell found out that Harper was in Crosshouse Hospital, near Kilmarnock, and decided to meet him. The idea to record the conversation came to her “in the spur of the moment”.
Harper can be heard in a recording apologising to Isabell and admitting to raping her.
She said: “I was trying to act normal but when I got back out to the hospital car park, I was physically sick.”
Isabell went to the police with the new recorded evidence.
She said: “It was so much better than what I had experienced before. When you get a police officer who listens to you, it makes all the difference. A bit of compassion goes a long way.”
Despite the “emotional turmoil” and anxiety she experienced awaiting news of the case, Isabell said it was worth it.
She said: “All those who thought I was lying have been proved wrong. It’s a sad state of affairs when you have to get your own evidence to get your rapist jailed.”
Harper was arrested in Glasgow’s Barlinnie jail in March 2019. By that time, he had left hospital and was serving a 12-and-a-half year sentence for separate sexual offences.
Harper, who is now in a wheelchair, was jailed for a further four years for the rape.
As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Isabell did not get to see Harper’s sentencing last week at the High Court in Glasgow.
She said: “If it wasn’t for selfisolating, I’d definitely have been there. I feel like it’s not real.”
At Harper’s sentencing, his solicitor Lorraine Glancy said: “It is fair to say in his discussion with (Isabell), he indicated his regret at his conduct.”
However, Isabell said she would not encourage other women to face their rapist.
She added: “I would never advise women to do this. There are psychological consequences like flashbacks that come with doing it and I’m still struggling.”
Isabell suffers from PTSD and anxiety and sought support from Rape Crisis and the Star Centre counselling service.
She said: “Never judge someone as you don’t know the full picture. Survivors must have hope and know that they are not alone.”
● Contact Rape Crisis Scotland on 08088 010 302 or email support@rapecrisisscotland. org.uk
Those who thought I was lying were proved wrong
ISABELL WILLMOTT ON HER RAPIST’S CONVICTION