Rapist who attacked teen before fleeing Fife home when confronted by her boyfriend jailed

A rapist who fled from his home after he was confronted by the teenage victim’s boyfriend has been jailed for seven years.

John Bell exposed himself to the 19-year-old victim at his address in Fife and raped her.

A judge told Bell, 53, at the High Court in Edinburgh: “You show no remorse or insight. You accept no responsibility for this.”

Bell, a grandfather, had denied raping the woman during a trial but was convicted of carrying out the sex attack on her on May 31, 2024. He had lodged a special defence, claiming that sex was consensual.

The court heard that following the rape, the victim told her partner, who confronted Bell. The man told police that his girlfriend was distressed when she spoke to him in the aftermath of the assault on her.

He said: “She was hysterical. She was crying. She could barely speak. She was very upset.” She eventually confided in him that Bell had raped her.

He said: “I ran up to him and said to him ‘what the f*** have you done? You raped her’.”

“He was wearing a blue robe, a Rangers one, and he left the house and got into his orange Range Rover and drove off. I was going to hit him,” he said.

The court heard that the woman also confided in her mother following the attack on her. The mother said her daughter was “distraught” at the time. The victim said that following the sexual assault, she was left feeling sick and scared.

Bell claimed that consensual sex took place, but said he was left feeling “guilty and ashamed” following the encounter.

Defence counsel Louis Bendle told the court that Bell continued to deny committing the crime and maintained his position of consent.

Mr Bendle said the former construction worker has no previous convictions for sexual offending.

Bell was placed on the sex offenders’ register indefinitely. The judge made a non harassment order banning him from contacting or attempting to contact the victim for an indefinite period.

Judge Michael O’Grady KC said Bell’s actions were “cruel” and “callous” and added that a victim impact statement provided to him “makes concerning and distressing reading”.

The judge earlier told Bell after he was convicted of the sex crime: “She was a guest in your home and was entitled to feel safe there. You treated her as no more than an object for the satisfaction of your desires.”