Man jailed over rapes and abuse

The court heard Cocozza carried out the abuse over a 12-year period

A 77-year-old man who raped a woman and a girl and abused five other girls at addresses in Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire has been jailed for 10 years.

Giovanni Cocozza pleaded guilty to eight charges, including rape and lewd and libidinous behaviour between 1964 and 1976.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard how he was caught after one of his victims reported the abuse in 2007.

Judge Michael O'Grady QC also placed Cocozza on the sex offenders register.

The court heard how Cocozza raped a 15-year-old girl after she visited a shop that he owned in Largs, North Ayrshire, in 1973.

The girl had later been unable to get home and stayed at Cocozza's flat in the town.

She fled in the early hours of the morning after he attacked her in the room where she was sleeping.

You have pled guilty to an appalling course of conduct sustained over more than a decade Judge Michael O'Grady QC

Cocozza also raped a 20-year-old woman after she visited his flat in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, between 1975 and 1976.

The court heard that he carried out the attack while the woman was sleeping in a bed with her young son.

Cocozza also admitted abusing five other girls at his former home in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, and at two hotels, in Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, and Glasgow.

The abuse came to light when one of his victims contacted the social work department at South Lanarkshire Council in 2007.

Strathclyde Police were alerted and it emerged other women had been abused by Cocozza.

'Stolen childhoods'

He had been due to face trial on a total of 17 sex charges and six assaults but prosecutors accepted his guilty pleas to the reduced number of charges.

Passing sentence, judge Michael O'Grady QC said Cocozza had inflicted "pain, hurt and abuse of the worst kind" on his victims.

"You have pled guilty to an appalling course of conduct sustained over more than a decade," he said.

"You have stolen their childhoods and have blighted their lives - it is difficult to imagine their ordeal.

"Sadly no sentence I can impose can change that. All I can do is impose a sentence that reflects societies revulsion of these type of crimes."