Man who sexually preyed on boy and raped girl handed tougher jail sentence after appeal

A man who sexually preyed on a young boy and raped a 10-year-old girl has had his prison sentence increased following a successful appeal by the Crown Office.

Ryan Brown, 36, targeted the boy during a walk along an abandoned railway line in East Ayrshire between April 2011 and April 2013.

A court heard how the youngster - who was aged between four and five - was ordered to pull his trousers and underwear down and told to bend over.

The victim said Brown exposed himself, which caused him to panic and re-dress in fear of being urinated on.

In his testimony, the boy said he thought Brown was going to "kill him".

Brown then went on to rape a 10-year-old girl at a house in East Ayrshire on an occasion between November 2019 and March 2020.

Jurors heard how the schoolgirl attempted to punch and kick Brown during the attack but was unable to fend him off.

Brown denied any wrongdoing but was last June found guilty of raping one child and causing another to participate in sexual activity following a trial at the High Court in Kilmarnock.

At the High Court in Glasgow in July, Lord Colbeck jailed Brown for seven years.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) lodged an appeal against the sentence, arguing it was "unduly lenient".

The Appeal Court agreed and quashed the original sentence.

Lady Dorrian, Lord Matthews and Lord Beckett have instead handed Brown a 14-year extended sentence, with 11 years in jail and three years on licence once released back into the community.

Read more from Sky News:
Paedophile gang that ran 'monstrous' child sex abuse ring jailed
Former police officers arrested over Rotherham sexual abuse claims

Lady Dorrian, lord justice clerk of Scotland, highlighted a victim impact statement which reported the girl had only recently started going out to play with her friends again.

The judge wrote in the appeal ruling: "It is obvious that the harm in this case goes beyond that inherent in the offence of rape."

Kenny Donnelly, deputy crown agent, said COPFS is "committed to improving the criminal justice journey for victims, from the stage of reporting all the way through to sentencing".

He added: "Prosecutors have a responsibility in legislation to consider appeals based upon undue leniency in sentencing.

"Such appeals are rare but important to ensure the public interest is properly served.

"They allow the court to review sentences that the Crown believe fall outside the range of punishment reasonably considered appropriate.

"COPFS believes that it is important that the harm caused by sexual offending, and the culpability of the convicted person, must be consistently reflected in sentencing decisions."