Man who raped murder victim five months before her death jailed

A man who raped a teenager five months before she was murdered by her brother has been sentenced to 10 and a half years behind bars.

Jamie Starrs, 20, assaulted Amber Gibson and raped her while she was asleep or unconscious at a property in Bothwell in June 2021.

Amber, 16, was sexually assaulted and murdered in November 2021 by her brother Connor Gibson, who was convicted last month following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

Starrs was found guilty of raping the teenager following a separate trial at the High Court in Lanark in July.

He was also convicted of raping another teenage girl in Bothwell, South Lanarkshire, in May 2021.

You have been convicted of appalling crimes against two innocent teenage girls

Judge Thomas Welsh KC handed Starrs an extended sentence comprising 10 and a half years in custody and two years of supervision upon release at the High Court in Edinburgh on Tuesday.

Sentencing Starrs, who appeared via video link from custody, the judge said: “You have been convicted of appalling crimes against two innocent teenage girls and you have been assessed as being of very high risk of sexual violence on release.

“I am required to take into account your age and difficult upbringing – however, the crimes remain serious and grave, and I will impose an extended sentence.”

He said that he would have ordered 11 years to be served in custody but reduced this to 10 and a half years behind bars to take into account the time that Starrs has spent on remand.

The 20-year-old was also found guilty of a breach of bail conditions, and of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

He has been placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely.

Giving a plea in mitigation, Michael Meehan KC, representing Starrs, highlighted that as he is under 25 the sentence must take into account sentencing guidelines which reflect that a younger person will have a lower level of maturity than an older person.

He said a report identified that Starrs shows “cognitive and emotional immaturity”.

The lawyer had also urged the judge to consider his client’s adverse childhood experiences when sentencing.

He told the court that Starrs was removed from parental care at the age of three and developed addiction issues from the age of nine.

Mr Meehan said: “He has a traumatic background from a young age which perhaps gives some degree of explanation.”

The sentencing comes a fortnight after Connor Gibson, 20, was convicted of attacking his sister Amber in woodland in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, in November 2021, removing her clothes, sexually assaulting with the intention of raping her, inflicting blunt force trauma to her head and body, and strangling her.

Amber was reported missing on the evening of Friday November 26 and her body was discovered in Cadzow Glen at about 10.10am on November 28.

Stephen Corrigan, 45, was found guilty of attempting to defeat the ends of justice and breach of the peace by intimately touching and concealing Amber’s body after discovering it, instead of contacting the emergency services.

Gibson will be sentenced on September 4 for a crime Judge Lord Mulholland described as “depraved”, while Corrigan will also be sentenced next month.

Commenting on the sentencing of Starrs, Detective Inspector Lorraine Wilson, of Lanarkshire division’s rape investigation unit, said: “Jamie Starrs subjected two women to violent sexual attacks and he is now facing the consequences of his despicable actions.

“The victims showed great strength in coming forward and reporting what happened to them. Despite one of the women having died before she was able to see justice being done, her evidence was key in securing his conviction.

“Our thoughts remain with the other victim in this case and I hope this sentence will bring her some comfort and closure.

“I want to thank everyone who worked on this investigation. Police Scotland is committed to bringing all perpetrators of sexual crimes to justice and I would urge anyone who wishes to report an incident of this nature, regardless of when it happened, to contact us.

“We will investigate it thoroughly and you’ll receive support from police and partner agencies.”