An Airdrie man who raped his two sisters for more than a decade has been jailed for 10 years.
Edward Reid's mum wept in court as he was sentenced for repeatedly raping and sexually abusing the girls between 2003 and 2013.
Sarah McLeod and Chelsea Downing have bravely spoken out about their ordeal after waiving their right to anonymity.
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The 32-year-old claimed his sisters had conspired against him in a bid to get criminal injury compensation, the Record reports.
But his lies were not believed by a jury who last month found him guilty of repeatedly raping and sexually abusing the girls.
Chelsea and Sarah told their mum about Reid’s abuse in September 2020 forcing her to call the police on her son.
Following his conviction at the High Court in Edinburgh, they spoke to the Daily Record so they could finally unmask their ‘predator’ brother.
Reid has now been locked up and placed on the sex offenders’ register for life.
Mum-of-one Chelsea, who was just six-years-old when the abuse started, said: “I’m happy that the judge and jury saw through his persona and saw him for the beast that he is. There are no winners here today.
“It’s just about justice and making sure he’s not able to do the same thing to anyone else. We could have applied for compensation and not gone to court. So why would we put ourselves through a trial if that’s what it was all about?
“Why would we drag our mum and the rest of the family through something like this for the sake of money?” The 25-year-old added: “I’m really pleased with the sentence he got. I wanted to see double figures and that's what we got.”
Sarah, 29, a mum-of-two, said: “What he did not only affected Chelsea and I, but it also hurt our entire family. We’ve lost so many people because of what he did. It really tore us apart. I’m really glad that we won’t need to see his face for 10 years now.”
Reid, who was just 12-years-old when he began molesting his sisters, was handed a six year sentence for the attacks on both girls by Judge Thomas Welsh KC on Friday.
The paedophile was given an additional 10 year prison term for the repeated rape of Chelsea when he was aged between 20 and 23. The sentences will run concurrently.
Defence advocate Lili Prais had asked the judge to be “as lenient as you can” and stated that Reid is still being supported by his partner of 14 years.
She added that he was considered at "low risk" of reoffending and hoped to put his time in prison to good use.
But jailing Reid, Judge Thomas Welsh KC said: “You have been convicted of a very grave and serious catalogue of abuse and rapes against your sisters when they were just children and teenagers.
“When these offences started, you were only a child yourself. The sentence must reflect the damage you did to your sisters over this lengthy period.
“I take into account your previous good character and also your evidence in the trial that you deny these offences and say that your sisters lied and perjured themselves for criminal injuries compensation.
“I also take into account the two victim impact statements which I’ve now read. Both your sisters say that their lives were ruined by your conduct.”
Reid, who appeared via video link, showed no emotion as the sentence was read out on while his shattered family sat in the public gallery.
After forcing his victims to give evidence, the predator was found guilty of pushing Sarah’s head into a pillow and repeatedly raping her between 2004 and 2010.
Jurors also found that he smothered, strangled and restrained Chelsea before sexually assaulting and raping her between 2003 and 2013.
As a result, Chelsea cannot stand being touched by anyone other than her husband and son. While Sarah continues to suffer from flashbacks and nightmares following her ordeal.
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