ANDREW MARSHALL FROM METHILL SENTENCED FOR RAPE IN EDINBURGH HIGH COURT

Andrew Marshall, a 25-year-old man from Leven, was formally sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh after being convicted of a heinous sexual assault. The court heard that Marshall had committed a brutal and unprovoked attack on a fourteen-year-old girl in the town of Methil, located in Fife, just over a year prior to his sentencing.

According to court records, Marshall forcibly assaulted the young teenager behind a nursery school in Methil. The incident took place on Methilhavn Road, where the girl was walking at the time. The court was told that Marshall grabbed her from behind and subsequently raped her in the grounds of the nearby Woodlands Nursery. The attack shocked the local community and prompted a police investigation that involved DNA testing of men and boys residing in the Methil area.

During the investigation, police noted that although Marshall was not initially tested, he was aware that he was likely to be screened. Recognizing this, he voluntarily came forward to the authorities. Marshall maintained that the girl had consented to the sexual encounter and claimed she had told him she was 17 years old. However, these assertions were rejected by the jury during the trial, which found him guilty of rape.

At the sentencing hearing, Lord Hardie emphasized the severity of the crime, describing it as a