Former soldier jailed for raping girls for 45 years

● Six victims of sex abuser who began offending aged 12

A rapist who sexually abused young girls for more than a 45 years has been jailed for 12 years.

David Scott, 60, from Edinburgh began his campaign of abuse aged 12 and carried on until he was 57.

At the High Court in Glasgow he admitted raping three young girls and sexually abusing another three.

Over the years he created a climate of fear to prevent his victims speaking out.

Scott, a former soldier who was discharged from the army, left one young victim so traumatised she tried to take her own life aged just ten.

Sentencing him judge Lady Stacey said: “The abuse of young girls is abhorrent.

“You moved through generations of girls. You created a culture of fear which allowed your abuse to carry on.

“Many years ago you were reported to the police, but no action was taken due to lack of evidence, and you continued with your campaign of abuse.”

The court heard that some of Scott’s victims suffered emotional, psychological and physical trauma.

Lady Stacey told Scott that, but for his early plea, she would have jailed him for 14 years and added: “Your guilty pleas at least spared your victims giving evidence.”

The sexual abuse took place from 1970 until 2015 at various addresses in Edinburgh and Turkey.

Scott was finally brought to justice after a victim went to the police in 2017.

He admitted ten charges including rape and lewd and libidinous behaviour.

His first victim was preyed on for 13 years from the age of five.

The victim was badly traumatised due to her ordeal and twice attempted suicide. The first time was when she was 10.

Another victim pretended to be asleep hoping he would go away. A third girl who was five when the abuse began was told: “Remember our wee secret.”

Scott went on to rape another young girl. She was just seven when he first struck.

She told her mother and this sparked a police investigation in 1997.

Scott was detained, but no charges were brought

It meant he was able to prey on a fifth girl who was aged four to eight at the time.

His final victim suffered at his hands for four years until 2015 . The abuse started when she was eight.

A fresh police investigation was sparked in 2017 when one of his victims reported the abuse.