Quartet who groomed and had sex with teen are jailed for 15 years

● Victim was plied with alcohol before attack at birthday party in Glasgow flat

Four men who groomed and sexually abused a vulnerable 15-year-old schoolgirl have been jailed for a total of 15 years.

Aivars Hauberts, 21, Ailands Aleksanders, 22, Hardis Gindra, 27, and Ludvigs Rudevics. 35, treated the schoolgirl as a sex object.

Hauberts, Aleksanders and Rudevics, who are all originally from Latvia, were found guilty at the High Court in Glasgow of raping her, but continue to deny this.

Hauberts and Aleksanders were yesterday each jailed for four years and Rudevics was jailed for six years.

Co-accused Gindra, who was found guilty of having underage sex with her on two occasions in 2015, was jailed for a year.

Atthehighcourtinglasgow judge Lord Armstrong told the four accused: “You have each been convicted of the sexually exploiting and abuse of a vulnerable teenage girl, who at the relevant time was only 15 years of age when this took place in June and July 2015.

“Aivarts Hauberts, Aillnads Aleksanders and Ludvigs Rudevics, you stand convicted of raping this young girl. That is a grave crime from which all young girls and women should be protected.”

All four accused were placed on the sex offenders’ register.

Their young victim, who was in court to see them sentenced, made no comment.

The four accused bought lingerie for the girl, as well as plying her with alcohol and cannabis. Their aim was to have sex with her.

Their victim, who is now 19 and lives in Glasgow, told prosecutor Bernard Ablett she drank vodka and Mad Dog at a birthday party and was “extremely drunk”.

Shesobbedasshetoldofhow Hauberts and Alekanders, who were at the party, at a flat on Burnfield Road, Glasgow, on 3 June 2015, raped her.

The teenager said in evidence that she was intoxicated and falling in and out of sleep.

The victim also told the court that Rudevics raped her at a flat on Ardencraig Road, Glasgow, on 14 July 2015 after offering her a place to stay for the night, and that Gindra had under-age sex with her in an unknown location on 13 June 2015.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said she was introduced to the men by a schoolfriend.

She said initially the men were very polite, but added: “They started speaking sexually to me.”

The witness was asked why she socialised with these men and said: “It was the only attention I was getting in my life.

“They were nice to me and they were making me feel good.”