A Fife child rapist who attacked girls when he was a teenager will be risk assessed for a potential life sentence.
Notorious “urban hunter” Brandon Robb subjected children to sickening ordeals over a four-year period.
The 28-year-old preyed on two little girls and a young boy at locations in Leslie between May 2011 and May 2015.
He also terrified two women in the town in crimes committed between November 2019 and February 2023.
Jurors at the High Court in Edinburgh heard how in one of the incidents, Robb seized his victim by her neck, compressed her breathing and repeatedly punched her.
The thug has previous convictions for sexual offences.
As well as rape, Robb was also convicted of unlawful sexual intercourse with a child, sexually assaulting a child and two courses of domestic abuse.
He appeared via a video link from jail to be sentenced at the High Court in Inverness.
Lifelong restriction arguments
An order for lifelong restriction is a prison term for the most violent criminals followed by intensive social work supervision upon release, during which the offender can be returned to prison for committing further crimes.
Defence counsel Richard Goddard KC invited judge Lord Lake to sentence Robb without imposing such an order.
He said: “The test here is whether the risk criteria may be met.
“I invite the court to take the view that is not the case here.
“This is at the High Court because of charges one and three (both rape).
“The remaining charges, individually or collectively, would ordinarily be indicted at sheriff court level.
“The striking fact in relation to charges one and three is the accused’s age – he is now 28.
“These charges occurred at a time when he was 14 in charge one and in charge three, 15 or 16.
“It would appear charges three and four… there was no force involved – that carries significant weight in mitigation.
“In relation to previous convictions, I can well understand the accused has a record.”
‘Risk is lowered’
Mr Goddard explained his client also has convictions for breaching a Sexual Offences Prevention Order.
“So far as contact offending is concerned, there has been no sexual offending for a period in excess of 10 years.
“There are no outstanding cases of a sexual nature.
“In terms of sexual offending, there have been no further reported incidents since 2015, which suggests risk is lowered.
“He has no previous convictions carrying any domestic aggravation.
“He’s the father of two sons. He’s been remanded since August 11, 2023. He was unemployed.
“He has suffered from a pretty… traumatic childhood. He was then into care.
“It is to his credit that he has set to try and… take some help available to him. He attends health and wellbeing sessions in custody and is seeing a psychologist.
“I accept that custody is inevitable in this case, of course.”
Further risk assessment
Lord Lake deferred sentencing further for a risk assessment to be completed.
Robb will be sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh at a hearing in June.
On that occasion, Lord Lake will rule on a request from the Crown to impose indefinite non-harassment orders to protect four different people from Robb.
The judge said: “I have given consideration to the points raised by Mr Goddard which are points of some substance.
“I am satisfied that the risk criteria may be met.”
Lord Lake stressed no decision has been made at this stage.
Robb gained notoriety when he posted pictures of himself and his dog hunting deer in the Scottish countryside on social media.
He was jailed in 2014 after admitting using his pet to hunt and kill a rare piebald deer as he lived a “feral existence” and was an “urban hunter”.
He killed the deer while awaiting sentencing for stealing 30 ducks from a farm in Fife.
He was the subject of a Police Scotland missing persons alert in August 2020 but taunted police officers on his Facebook account, saying he had “gone fishing” in England.
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