Man (33) had sex with girl (15) in city flat

A Perth man, described as an alcoholic, had sex twice with a vulnerable 15-year-old schoolgirl at a city centre flat.

Perth Sheriff Court was told that 33-year-old Martin Reeves had been told the victim’s age but that“didn’t appear to worry him”.

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been moved from England to Scotland“for her safety”and was living at a residential home near Perth, stated depute fiscal Michael Sweeney.

But she met up with Reeves during a visit to Perth, when he was“made aware”of her age - and they later had sex in a South Street flat.

When police knocked on his door, he instructed the teen to hide under the bed.

Initially he refused to open up and shouted at officers: “Come back with a warrant.”

He eventually appeared, wearing only a jumper and boxer shorts, but claimed she had left after being there earlier.

But one of the constables saw a hand sticking out of the bed and the youngster, wearing little clothing, was discovered.

Reeves had his name added to the Sex Offenders’Register after appearing from custody and will be sentenced on June 24.

He admitted engaging in sexual activity with the teenager at the house between December 15 and 16, 2020.

He was on bail from Dundee Sheriff Court at the time and subject to appear on an undertaking at the Perth court on January 7, 2021.

On leaving the property, Mr Sweeney said Reeves shouted at police:“There’s nothing wrong with a 16-year-old and a 33-year-old, you a***holes.”

When interviewed, Reeves did not“accept”he had been aware of the complainer’s age at the time of the offence.

Solicitor David Holmes said his client, who is currently serving a sentence at Perth Prison, said he wanted to resolve matters to spare the girl having to attend court.

Sheriff William Wood told Reeves:“Because of the nature of this offence, I can’t deal with it today.”

He deferred sentence for a Community Justice Social Work report and an assessment from the Tay Project which aims to rehabilitate sex offenders.

Reeves admitted 18 previous convictions, dating back to 2004.