Student repeatedly raped woman he met in street on Christmas Eve

Court: Gupta was jailed for seven years for raping the woman.Grampian Police

A student repeatedly raped a woman he met in the street on Christmas Eve.

Amit Gupta was jailed for seven years after a court heard his attack was not an isolated incident in Aberdeen.

The 28-year-old Aberdeen University student denied raping the woman in December 24, 2010, but was found guilty.

On Thursday the High Court in Edinburgh heard that Gupta’s victim was "too drunk to give her free agreement to sex”.

Lord Tyre recommended the business administration student from India should be deported on conclusion of his sentence.

He told Gupta: "You took advantage of a girl who was too drunk to give her free agreement to sex. Rape is one of the most serious offences in our law. It is made worse in the present case by the element of calculation and planning that went into it.

"Her anguish and distress as a consequence of this traumatic incident were only too obvious."

The judge pointed out that recent changes in rape law in Scotland were intended to emphasise that agreement by a person to sexual intercourse must be freely given.

Lord Tyre added: "I find it of considerable concern that even now, having heard your victim giving evidence at your trial, you seem unable to accept how wrong your actions were that night.

"I am in no doubt that the revulsion of society at what you have done has to be reflected in a custodial sentence."

The rape victim said she had met friends for a meal and drinks in the city centre on December 23 and had drank a bottle of wine and had a vodka but could only recall "snapshots" of the night. CCTV film showed her with Gupta at about 1.30am.

She said the next thing she remembered was being in a flat with a man she did not know. She recalled having a cup of tea but feeling "confused, dizzy and really, really sleepy".

Defence counsel David Moggach said first offender Gupta had come to Aberdeen to study and added: "He has been a law-abiding citizen. He came to this country to better himself. His family took a loan to enable him to do that on the understanding that when he graduated he would be able to seek better employment and assist his family financially."

The defence counsel said that Gupta, of Langstane Place, Aberdeen, was "absolutely devastated" by the verdict of the jury at his trial. He added he was not coping well with prison. Gupta was placed on the sex offenders register for life.

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