Man given nine years for rape at knifepoint "may never be released"

Double rapist Sean Moynihan was convicted for the Johnstone attack and has been given a strict Order for Lifelong Restriction.

Published 3rd Dec 2015

A double rapist who once slashed serial killer Peter Tobin jail may never be freed from prison.

Sean Moynihan was today locked up for a minimum nine years after being convicted of a knifepoint sex attack on a teenage girl.

Moynihan struck in October last year at a cycle track in Johnstone, Renfrewshire soon after being released from jail for another brutal rape.

The 31 year-old returned to the High Court in Glasgow where he was hit with a strict Order for Lifelong Restriction.

It could mean similar to murderer Tobin - who Moynihan attacked in July this year - the rapist could spend the remainder of life in prison.

Judge Bill Dunlop QC told Moynihan that a risk assessment carried out on him was "most alarming and disturbing".

He went on: "You are what you are because you want to be. You can change, but if you do not, you face spending the rest of your days behind bars."

The judge said Moynihan would not automatically be freed after the nine year sentence.

He concluded: "You may well never be released."

The latest victim was walking on a cycle track in Johnstone when she was attacked around 2pm on October 2 last year.

Moynihan was back on the streets having been jailed in 2009 for raping a 16 year-old girl.

The 18 year-old wept as she told of being grabbed from behind and a knife put to her neck.

She eventually escaped his clutches when he allowed her to leave and she ran for safety.

The teenager told the court how she had never met Moynihan before.

But, the jury watched his police interview in which the rapist claimed he had met her weeks earlier outside a local supermarket.

Moynihan then told detectives how he happened to bump into her at the cycle track - and within minutes they were having consensual sex.

He insisted the young woman had been "laughing and joking" with him.

The attacker named the teenager and insisted she had casually chatted about her mum's job, an ex-boyfriend and how she got on with her family.

But, sinister Moynihan had trawled the victim's Facebook page shortly after the rape to glean information.

Prosecutors described this as a "cover-up" in a bid to fool detectives into believing what happened was consensual.

Moynihan said he had gone on to Facebook, but to "let her down gently" as he did not see anything between them being "long term".

He claimed he only became aware of any rape allegations when he spotted a story in a local paper - while celebrating news he was to be a dad.

Moynihan - who previously served in the armed forces - was convicted of the rape after a trial in June.

His QC John Scullion today/yesterday said the ex-personal trainer "maintained his innocence".

But, Judge Dunlop questioned this given "the lies that nailed" Moynihan.

Mr Scullion added: "It is clear he will have to undergo a very significant treatment programme before there is any likelihood of release."

Sentencing, the judge also told Moynihan that he appeared to be "intelligent", but that was what made him "more dangerous".

Since being convicted earlier this year, Moynihan has been jailed for 32 months for attacking Peter Tobin in HMP Edinburgh because he "annoyed" him.

Moynihan was also handed a six month sentence a week earlier at Glasgow Sheriff Court for smacking another inmate with a metal bar at Barlinnie jail.