Balaclava-clad man who raped schoolgirl in Edinburgh city centre facing lengthy jail term
A ‘violent’ man who raped a schoolgirl in Edinburgh city centre faces a lengthy prison sentence after he pleaded guilty to the attack.
Aaron Strachan appeared at the High Court in Edinburgh on December 4, where he admitted raping the 15-year-old girl in a basement area in York Place on May 25 this year.
The 20-year-old was wearing a balaclava when he approached the girl at a bus stop in Princes Street at around 5am. He led her through the city on foot to York Place where he carried out the terrifying attack.
Detective Inspector Gillian Wells, from Edinburgh’s Sex Offender Policing Unit, described the rape as ‘particularly harrowing’ and said it had a ‘profound effect’ on the victim.
Strachan also pleaded guilty to an assault to severe injury which took place in South Bridge on the same date as the rape, as well as an assault to severe injury and endangerment of life which took place in High Riggs on May 28.
DI Wells said: “The other assaults also demonstrate what a violent individual Strachan is, with no consideration of the consequences of his actions. I would like to thank local officers for their excellent work which ensured Strachan was quickly identified and arrested.”
She also encouraged any victims of sexual crimes to report them to the police.
She said: “Police Scotland remains committed to tackling sexual crimes and bringing those responsible to justice. I’d encourage anyone who has been a victim of such crimes to come forward and report it to us.
“We’ll thoroughly investigate and have specially trained officers and partner agencies to support you throughout.”Chief Inspector Trisha Clark, Area Commander for Edinburgh City Centre, said: “We understand that crimes of this nature have a serious impact on the local community.
“We will continue to work closely with partners to address any such concerns in the area.”