Sentenced for sex attack on girl (12) in Fife woods
A 12-year-old Fife girl with learning difficulties was sexually assaulted by a male she met through an on-line games site.
The attacker Andrew Gregory, avoided a jail term when he appeared for sentencing at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.
The incident occurred in 2005 and it was ten years before the victim could bring herself to tell anyone.
Gregory (27), of Perth, was 14 when he carried out the attack.
He admitted that on an occasion between 1st January and 31st December 2005, at The Den, Kennoway, he indecently assaulted a girl, then aged 12, by touching her breasts over and under her clothing.
He pushed her and pinned her down. He pulled down her lower clothing and attempted to penetrate her anus with his penis.
Depute fiscal Alex Kirk said, “The complainer was 12 at the time. She has significant mental health difficulties and mild learning difficulties. She met the accused via an online games site’s chat function. He travelled to her home at that time.
“On the day of the offence, they went for a walk in woodland area. It’s a secluded area and he reached over and touched her breasts.”
This was the start of the sexual assault but the girl did not tell anyone about it at the time.
However, the incident came to light in March 2015 when the victim spoke to a social worker about it.
The court was told unemployed Gregory has Asperger syndrome and was isolated as a child. He has no previous convictions.
Sheriff Charles MacNair told Gregory that if such an offence happened today it would be treated as attempted rape but it had to be dealt with under the law as it was at that time.
He imposed a community payback order with three years’ supervision and £1500 compensation. Gregory was also placed on a restriction of liberty order for 11 months. He will be on the sex offenders register for five years.
