WILLIAM DUNCAN AND LISA STUART SENTENCED IN MORAY

In August 2012, William Duncan, a convicted child rapist, was sentenced for attempting to sexually assault another young girl in Moray. Duncan, 29, had previously admitted to an incident involving a nine-year-old girl at his then residence in Keith in 2001. His criminal history includes an eight-and-a-half-year prison sentence handed down in 2006 for rape.

Duncan also took the step of writing to police in March 2010 regarding the new offence. His sentencing took place at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Earlier, in August 2006, Duncan and Lisa Stuart, both aged 23, were convicted of filming themselves sexually abusing a nine-year-old girl. The couple had heavily groomed the victim, using a camcorder to capture her horrific experiences, and forced her to record them as they engaged in repeated sex acts.

William Duncan was sentenced to eight and a half years for abusing the girl over a two-year period, admitting charges of rape and engaging in sickening sex acts in Elgin and Keith, Moray, between July 2003 and March 2005. Lisa Stuart, who recorded the assaults and is described as a mother-of-two, received a three-year sentence for their rape convictions.

During the sentencing, Judge Lord Hodge remarked to Stuart: "In a minor way, you assisted your partner to have sex with a nine-year-old girl. Your actions appear to have been influenced by the sexual and physical abuse you endured from Mr Duncan."

The footage played during the trial showed Duncan asking Stuart if she wanted to join in and also depicted him bathing naked with the girl. The jury—comprising 11 women and four men—was excused from duty for a decade due to the distress caused by viewing the evidence.

Both Duncan, of Rothiemay, Banffshire, and Stuart, of Elgin, Moray, were deemed at risk of reoffending, the High Court in Glasgow was told. They were both placed on the Sex Offenders Register and prohibited from working with children. Duncan was also ordered to undergo supervised community release for five years.

Representatives for the defendants stated that both individuals had learning difficulties and expressed remorse for their actions. Outside court, Detective Inspector Ewan Strachan of Grampian Police emphasized the importance of the victim's bravery: "I must stress the successful conclusion of this case could not have been achieved without this young victim taking her courage in both hands and coming forward to tell her story."