Two Fife men jailed for catalogue of abuse against young girls

Two Fife men have been jailed for physically abusing young girls over a period of several years.

Friends Alan Johnston, 41, of Hillfield Road, Inverkeithing, and James Stewart, 53, of Burnside Crescent, Rosyth, appeared at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

Three girls were regularly the victims of sickening violence when they were youngsters.

One of the victims, now an adult, told the court when she was a child Stewart held her by ankles and then plunged her head-first into a bath of cold water as a punishment.

The witness said that she was regularly left with bruises after being smacked, punched and kicked.

The girls shared their horrific ordeal with a jury but even after being found guilty the men still did not think they had done anything wrong.

The sheriff paid tribute to the victims.

He said: “Having heard the girls I was struck by the fact that despite the abuse they all appear to be doing well in their lives.”

The jury found Stewart guilty of two charges.

On various occasions between June 18 2000 and February 18 2009 he assaulted a young girl, repeatedly removed her clothing, seized her by the body and placed her into baths while he poured cold water over her, placed her over his knee, removed clothing and struck her on the buttocks to her injury.

Between April 19 2000 and February 18 2009, he assaulted a second child by repeatedly seizing her by the body and pulling her from her bed, struck her on the head and body, placed her into baths of cold water and immersed her head under water, punched and kicked her on the head and body, placed her over his knee, removed her lower clothing and struck her on the buttocks to her injury.

Johnston was found guilty of three similar charges.

Stewart’s solicitor Peter Robertson asked for Stewart to be spared jail because he was the carer for his step-father.

However, Sheriff Charles MacNair jailed Stewart for 10 months and Johnston for 15 months.