A former Army reservist from Dumfries has been jailed for more than 11 years for raping three women.
Lewis Grant, a self-styled “charming champagne lover and international man of mystery”, targeted victims from Dumfries to Stirling over a nine-year period.
His first victim was a girl of 15, whom he “beckoned” into bushes in a park in Dumfries in 2011 and had unlawful sex with.
Grant, now 28, went on to rape a 19-year-old student in her halls at Queen Margaret University, Musselburgh, before raping two more women while he was at Stirling University training to be a teacher and doing Army service in the Officer Training Corps.
One of the rapes involved BDSM [bondage, domination, sadism and masochism] and two of the rape victims were throttled by Grant to the danger of their lives.
One of them, then a 21-year-old student at Stirling, told of being lifted off the floor by Grant, who had his hands round her neck as her legs dangled and she choked.
Another of his rape victims, then a 20-year-old make-up artist, was beaten with a riding crop, waterboarded with Prosecco, burned with a blow torch and choked until she thought she was going to die.
She contacted police in May 2020 with photos of her injuries. Police investigated to see if Grant had any ex-partners who might also have been raped or abused. He was arrested a month later.
Giving evidence from behind a curtain at the High Court in Stirling during his trial, the whistleblower, now 24, said she had agreed to take part in “rougher sex” with Grant and went to his room in Stirling University accommodation in Bridge of Allan.
Grant battered her on the head before covering her face with a cloth and pouring sparkling wine slowly over her mouth and face while raping her at the same time.
The survivor said: “I was suffocating. The cloth was heavy on my face. I was in such a panic, I didn’t know what to do.”
Grant, now of Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire, was convicted of raping three women and assaulting two of them to the danger of their lives.
At the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday, Grant was sentenced to 11 and a half years in prison with a further three years extended sentence.
Detective Inspector Forbes Wilson of the Forth Valley Public Protection Unit described Grant as “a dangerous man who carried out these terrible crimes over a number of years and he will now face the consequences of his despicable actions in prison”.
He added: “His victims were incredibly brave to come forward and report Grant, then give evidence in court.
“Our thoughts remain with these women and I hope that the sentencing will give them some comfort and help them move forward.
“I would urge people to come forward to police and report it. They can be assured of being fully supported by officers and partner agencies.”
