Man guilty of raping two sleeping women in Edinburgh

A MAN has been found guilty of raping two women while they were asleep and sexually assaulting another.

Justin Lovell.

Justin Lovell was found guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh today of the attacks which happened at various addresses across the Capital.

In one attack, a 19-year-old woman had been sleeping following a party when she woke to find herself being attacked.

The attack was reported to police and during inquiries by Edinburgh’s Public Protection Unit it was established that 25-year-old Lovell had committed similar offences against other victims.

All of the incidents occurred while the women were asleep having attended a party.

Lovell was detained on July 29 and subsequently charged in relation to all of the attacks.

Detective Constable Andy Macmillan from the PPU at Fettes Police Station said: “Justin Lovell preyed upon women when they were at their most vulnerable and subjected them to serious sexual assaults, which left them deeply traumatised and in fear of their safety.

“After we launched our investigation into the attack that occurred in January 2015, we spoke with more survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Lovell, who bravely came forward and helped us build a case against him, which ultimately resulted in his conviction.

“I would like to praise all of these women for their courage and co-operation during our investigation and I hope they can now take comfort in the knowledge that their abuser will spend considerable time in prison.

“Police Scotland treats all reports of sexual assault with the utmost seriousness and will investigate these crimes robustly to identify offenders and bring them to justice.”