An Elgin man has been jailed for sexually assaulting two young girls, and raping one of them, during years of child abuse that started four decades ago.
William McGregor, 75, has been locked up for six years following a trial at the High Court in Inverness.
He had denied three charges involving two victims, who were aged as young as seven and 10 when the paedophile pensioner began preying on them.
One of his victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons, described McGregor, of Alba Place in Bishopmill, as a “disgrace and a vile human being”.
Following the conclusion of the court case, the woman told The Press and Journal: “What he did to me will always stay with me. He ruined my life. But I feel relieved to get justice.”
‘He told me not to tell anyone…it was between us’
The child abuse survivor has suffered anxiety, depression and even panic attacks ever since she was victimised “a number of times” as a youngster.
She was so traumatised by her ordeal that she had to give evidence against the rapist via video link because she felt unable to share the courtroom with him.
“I was aged between seven and nine when these things happened to me,” the Moray woman said, adding: “I never had a childhood.
“He told me not to tell anyone and that it was just between us. I knew something wasn’t right but I had no one to turn to. It was traumatic and I’ll never get over it.”
McGregor maintained his innocence throughout court proceedings despite previously owning up to one woman about what he had done to her.
“He did admit to me what he did through a text message,” she revealed. “The police took the mobile phone that I had for evidence.
“I couldn’t believe how he later pled not guilty and put us through the trauma of a trial.”
‘He needed to be punished’
A jury found McGregor guilty of three charges involving lewd, indecent and libidinous practices, assault, and rape.
He was finally unmasked as a sexual predator when one of his victims suffered a mental health breakdown.
“I went to the hospital and asked for help. I confided in a counsellor about what he did to me. I just had to let it out because it had been eating away at me,” she explained.
“Then I turned to the police. I was glad that I did it because this person who’d hurt me couldn’t get away with it anymore. He needed to be punished.”
The woman praised Police Scotland and other support services for being “absolutely brilliant”.
And she urged other people who are suffering in silence like she had been to come forward because “it’s never too late”.
She added: “It doesn’t matter what age you are. If you come forward it’s such a relief once you get it out.
“I’m glad that I did it. I didn’t realise how much help I’d get. It gave me the strength to get through this horrendous journey. Having this closure can help you move forward.
“You’re not on your own. Don’t ever think that because you’ll get so much support.”
‘He’s a vile, disgusting man…I hope he suffers’
The tearful woman described feeling “very relieved from the weight that came off” her upon hearing that guilty McGregor will spend the next few years in prison.
But she criticised his jail sentence, adding: “He’s a vile, disgusting man and I hope that he suffers now.
“Six years for what he did to two people is not enough. I’ve got to try and rebuild what’s left of my life.
“This is the end of my journey through this nightmare – the hardest thing I’ve ever done – and I’m so proud of myself for keeping going and getting through it.”
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