Men jailed over sex attack

The men were sentenced at the High Court

Two men with a history of committing sex crimes have been jailed for life for sexually assaulting and robbing a woman in her home.

Brian Travers, 29, and Paul Gargaro, 33, forced their way into their victim's flat in Edinburgh this year.

Judge Lord Philip described the attack on the 45-year-old university lecturer as an appalling crime as he sentenced the men on Tuesday.

He said both men were a danger to women and that the background reports on the pair made grim reading.

You are a cruel and calculating criminal and have shown no genuine remorse. You are clearly a danger to women and for that reason the sentence will be life in prison

Lord Philip

The victim spoke to BBC Scotland after sentence was passed, at the High Court in Edinburgh, and said she was relieved by the action the judge had taken.

She said: "I understand that at least one of them was out on licence and I just can't understand why I wasn't protected.

"I have felt quite angry that it was possible for them to get to me and I feel that the judge has begun to recognise that women like me do need to be protected .

"He made that point repeatedly and I'm very grateful to him."

She added: "I'm going to try to put it behind me and I'm going to try to reclaim my place on the streets of Edinburgh and to enjoy my life."

'Appalling indignity'

During the attack she was forced to disclose her PIN number for a bank card and was robbed of credit cards, cash, jewellery and a mobile phone.

Travers was trapped because he licked her ear as she was bound and blindfolded and being threatened with rape. Police were able to get a sample which matched his DNA.

Lord Philip told him he had subjected the woman to an appalling indignity as well as using extreme violence to steal her money, after targeting her flat to establish that she was alone there.

Travers has previous convictions

The judge said: "You are a cruel and calculating criminal and have shown no genuine remorse. You are clearly a danger to women and for that reason the sentence will be life in prison."

Gargaro was also jailed for life for his part in the attack on 10 February.

Lord Philip told him: "You clearly obtain a gratification from the humiliation of women."

At an earlier hearing Travers and Gargaro admitted assaulting the woman to her severe injury and robbing and indecently attacking her.

A third man, Alan Forde, 21, also admitted assaulting and robbing her, but not taking part in the sex attack.

All three were originally charged with attempting to murder the woman, but the Crown accepted pleas to a reduced charge.

Released early

Forde was jailed for seven years for his part in the attack.

Travers was jailed for seven years in 1997 at the High Court in Edinburgh for a sex attack on a 20-year-old American student whom he punched, forced to partly undress and subjected to degrading abuse in a city park.

He was imprisoned by Lord Philip, but was released early after serving just three-and-a-half years in June last year.

Gargaro has twice been previously convicted of attempted rape.

Gargaro was homeless at the time of the attack

He was first jailed for five years at the High Court in Inverness in 1991 for assault with intent to rob and attempted rape.

He was released early on licence and was jailed for seven years at the High Court in Aberdeen in 1995 for attempted rape and robbery.

After guilty pleas from Travers and Gargaro Lord Philip ordered background reports before passing sentence and the judge said they made grim reading.

The men had served time together in Peterhead where they both took part in programmes aimed at reforming sex offenders.

But, said Lord Philip, Travers had lied his way through the counselling sessions and lied to those supervising his freedom on licence.

Travers and Gargaro teamed up again after a chance meeting in Edinburgh.