Jailed: Paedophile who raped a schoolgirl in Dalkeith house as his wife filmed the horrific abuse

A high risk paedophile who raped a schoolgirl as his wife filmed the horrific abuse has been jailed for 10 and a half years.

High-risk paedophile: Damien McCann

Damien and Mary McCann preyed on the victim who was as young as ten at the time of her ordeal.

A judge heard Mary McCann "encouraged" her sick husband's attacks - which only ended when police swooped after a tip-off.

Despite being arrested and charged, Damien McCann, 35, claimed the girl was "happy" during the attacks.

He has been jailed after admitting raping the girl between May 2016 and January 2019 at a house in Dalkeith, Midlothian.

Mary McCann, 39, also faced the accusations, but she took her own life in January 2020, the High Court in Glasgow was told at a previous hearing last month.

Police raided the couple's home initially in connection with an indecent images probe.

A mobile phone and laptop were seized and McCann admitted that he used the "dark web" to look up "extreme pornography".

However, officers went on to uncover footage of the horrific abuse of the girl and McCann was identified due to his "distinctive tattoos".

Prosecutor Angela Gray said: "A female voice - identified as Mary McCann - can be heard encouraging him."

Detectives went on to find a total of 20 vile clips of McCann raping the girl with the "majority" filmed by his wife.

Damien McCann confessed to the abuse when quizzed by police.

Miss Gray added: "He confirmed that he and his wife shared the videos with each other via WhatsApp and that they would watch together for sexual gratification.

"Damien McCann confirmed that he is sexually attracted to the girl. He described her as looking 'happy' when he raped her."

It also emerged Damien McCann had sexually assaulted another young child including when she was sleeping.

He also pled guilty to that as well as admitting the possession and distribution of indecent images.

McCann further admitted having more than 200 video clips and photos of what was described as "extreme pornography".

He returned to court to face justice and a judge told him: "Child rape is always an extremely serious offence and here I consider there are factors which rendered your conduct even worse."

During a sentencing hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh, Lady Scott said: "It is difficult to envisage the degree of damage you have caused to your victim.

"For your ongoing sexual gratification you videoed these rapes and sexual abuse. Over 20 recordings of these videos were recovered. The videos are planned and graphic."

The judge pointed out that McCann had gone on to create musical soundtracks and added titles to recordings and shared images with his partner.

Lady Scott told McCann that he would have faced a 14-year jail sentence but for his guilty pleas.

The judge also ordered that he be kept under supervision for a further three year period and warned that if he breached licence conditions during it he can be recalled to prison.

He was placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for an indefinite period.

The court heard that McCann's wife could be heard encouraging him in a recovered recording , saying: "Tell her how much she will like it."

McCann earlier admitted assaulting and raping the girl between May 2016 and January 2019 with his wife filming the conduct and verbally encouraging him.

He also admitted possessing and making the indecent recordings and distributing material.

The sex offender also pled guilty to possessing a cache of videos and images of extreme pornography, including bestiality.

McCann further pled guilty to assaulting a six month old baby girl at a house in Edinburgh between December 2018 and January 2019 by putting his naked erect penis beside her face with photographs being taken.

Advocate depute Eric Robertson said the abuse came to light after police received intelligence about indecent images being uploaded to the internet. During a search of McCann's former home in Dalkeith officers recovered a laptop and mobile phone.

Following his arrest he said he had looked at a lot of pornography and had accessed the dark web to look for extreme materiel.

The court heard that McCann could be identified in video recordings that were discovered from distinctive tattoos. He told police that the girl looked “happy” when he raped her.

McCann, who has previous convictions for violence, but not for sexual offending, has now been assessed as presenting a high risk of sexual re-offending.

Following the case, Detective Inspector Ally Sellar, senior investigating officer, said: “This was a highly distressing case for all involved and we welcome the sentencing of Damien McCann.

“The victim has had a horrendous start to her young life and officers remained determined to make sure that McCann was held to account for his horrific crimes.

“The enquiry involved a number of partners including social work and health care professionals, all of whom were committed to bringing justice and ensuring the girls subsequent welfare and safety.

“The police enquiry was complex and involved a number of officers who spent a considerable amount of time investigating the case, which was one of the worst instances of abuse ever seen by the team.

“I would like to extend my thanks to all involved in this case, and reinforce the message that any form of child abuse is a serious criminal offence and a priority for Police Scotland.

“I would urge anyone with any concerns about a child at risk of abuse, or a potential victim, to contact police immediately.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.