A convicted serial stalker has been jailed for raping a sleeping woman in Perth.
William Hutton, 34, attacked the woman at a house in the city on March 15 2020.
The High Court in Edinburgh heard how he preyed on the female while she was intoxicated and was incapable of telling him she did not want to have sex.
Prosecutor Grant Markie told judge Lord Beckett that Hutton has three previous convictions for stalking women after a jury convicted him of rape.
Lord Beckett said the accused must be assessed by specially-trained social workers to understand whether he poses an ongoing risk to women’s safety.
Remanding him in custody, Lord Beckett said: “In the light of this conviction, the court has to inquire further about the risk to the public that you pose.
“You will be remanded in custody as you no longer enjoy the presumption of innocence.”
Hutton sat in the dock with his head in his hands in the moments following the verdict.
Sentence was deferred and he will be returned to the High Court in Edinburgh in April.
Serial stalker
Mr Markie told the court Hutton had served a 15-month jail term for one of his stalking offences, imposed at Perth Sheriff Court in August 2018.
In April 2022, Sheriff Euan Duthie ordered Hutton be supervised for two years after the same court heard how he left a woman feeling “drained and broken” by his stalking actions.
The court heard how he bombarded his victim with thousands of WhatsApp texts, emails and calls, between March and May 2020.
Speaking about the impact Hutton’s actions had on his victim, depute procurator fiscal Michael Sweeney said: “It caused a huge amount of stress and anxiety and had a detrimental effect on her general health.”
In the 2018 case, the court heard how Hutton engaged in a course of conduct which caused his victim to be placed in a state of fear and alarm.
The court heard how turned up at the woman’s home during the night uninvited and began banging on doors and windows.
He also sent her emails.
For the latest court cases across Tayside and Fife, join our Courts Facebook page.
