Supreme Court upholds man’s rape conviction

Ruling: Appeal unanimously rejected

A rapist who has spent the last 13 years trying to get his conviction overturned has had his bid unanimously rejected by the Supreme Court.

Former golf professional Graham Gordon was jailed for five years in 2002 after being found guilty of raping a woman he met in an Aberdeen nightclub.

Prosecutors claimed that he attacked the woman after taking her back to his Bridge of Don home.

Gordon, 56, always maintained his innocence and made several attempts to clear his name, bankrolled largely by his family. He was jailed at the High Court in Stonehaven, and served three years and four months of his sentence.

A statement from the court confirmed that, during an interview with the police, Gordon asserted that intercourse was with the complainant’s consent.

It said: “His answers provided the necessary corroboration for the charge of rape to be indicted for trial.

“He had been offered the opportunity to inform a solicitor the interview was being

“Maintains that he has suffered a miscarriage of justice”

conducted, but not the opportunity to consult with a solicitor before answering the police’s questions.

“He maintains that he has suffered a miscarriage of justice, and has made several applications to the respondent to refer his case to the High Court.”

However, his appeal was unanimously rejected by the court.

Last year, Gordon launched a bid to sue the Scottish Government for nearly £700,000.

Although the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission admitted there “may” have been a miscarriage of justice, it refused to reopen the case or refer it back to the Court of Appeal.

The commission ruled it did not feel the move was in the interests of justice, given the amount of time that had passed. Gordon instigated legal action against both the SCCRC and Holyrood ministers, alleging “gross negligence” in the way his case for an appeal had been handled.

He was seeking £695,000 for breach of duty and malpractice in public office, relating to the 2007 decision.

APPEAL BID: Graham Gordon was jailed for five years in 2002 after being found guilty of rape