Child rapist Malcolm Lamont, who preyed on the first victim as a teenager, has been sentenced to prison

A child rapist who began exploiting his first victim as a teenager has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

34-year-old Malcolm Lamont introduced two girls to pornography at a young age and then sexually abused them, including raping a teenager.

Lamont, formerly of Denny in Stirlingshire, repeatedly abused the children over a seven-year period at an address in Motherwell in North Lanarkshire.

A judge at the High Court in Edinburgh told him: “These sexual offenses are of considerable seriousness.”

Judge Fiona Tait said the sex crimes committed by Lamont had had a significant impact on the underage victims.

She said a victim impact statement provided by one of the complainants spoke of ongoing trauma as a result of the crime, which included disruption to her education.

The judge said she acknowledged that Lamont had no prior convictions for sexual offenses.

Lamont had denied a number of allegations in an earlier High Court trial in Livingston but was convicted of six offences.

He committed indecent behavior towards his first victim between March 2008 and May 2010 by showing pornographic images on his mobile phone and on a television to a girl who was aged between six and eight at the time.

He alleged similar behavior when the girl was 12 between March 2014 and March the following year, showing her pornographic images and websites.

During the same period, his offending escalated to include touching, sexually assaulting and raping the girl.

He was also found guilty of indecency with a second girl after showing her pornography on his phone and a television between the ages of two and four between March 2008 and May 2010.

He committed similar abusive behavior towards the second girl when she was between seven and nine years old and then sexually assaulted the child.

Defense lawyer Iain Smith said Lamont continued to deny committing the offenses.

He told the court that Lamont had been convicted of assault once before and had never been to prison until he was remanded in custody at the end of his previous trial in March this year.

He said Lamont reported he had a difficult family background and was considered “at risk.”

The defense attorney said Lamont was well aware that a prison sentence was inevitable following his conviction for rape and sexual assault.

Lamont was placed on the sex offenders register indefinitely following his conviction.

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