Rapist jailed for attacks on 5 women

A MAN who raped and assaulted five women over a 15-year period has been jailed for ten years.

Robert Dewar, 48, began the attacks in February 1998 and continued until last year.

The ordeals of his victims included being throttled and threatened with being set on fire, as well as being spat on and abused.

At the High Court in Edinburgh, judge Lord Bannatyne said the offences could be dealt with only by a custodial sentence.

Ordering Dewar to be supervised for three years following his release as well as being placed on the sex offenders’ register for life, Lord Bannatyne added: ‘You are assessed as being at high risk of re-offending.’

Dewar, a prisoner of Edinburgh’s HMP Saughton, was convicted last month after an eight-day trial at the High Court in Livingston. Sentence was deferred for reports.

A jury was told by one victim how she had been raped by Dewar, originally from Lochgelly, in Fife, when he was drunk.

He also threatened to set one victim on fire, painted nail varnish on her face and bit her on the face and lip before compressing her throat and restricting her breathing to the danger of her life.

During another attack, Dewar threatened to set fire to another woman by pouring alcohol on the ground and threatening to ignite it before grabbing her by the throat.

He pushed another woman down a flight of stairs before then trying to throttle her.