Satan claim rape bid man jailed

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A man who blamed the devil for him trying to rape a woman in Glasgow has been jailed for four years.

Misrak Eyob was found guilty of attacking the 35-year-old woman in the city's Royston area in July last year.

The 20-year-old from Eritrea, who was caught on CCTV, claimed that "Satan created the situation".

At the High Court in Glasgow, judge Sean Murphy QC also ordered that Eyob be supervised for a further two years on his release.

The court heard how he pounced on the woman as she stood alone in the street after becoming separated from her friends on a night out.

During his trial the jury was shown graphic CCTV footage of the attack, which happened after the victim had left a nearby bar.

Persuaded claim

The incident only ended when the crying victim alerted passers-by to what had happened.

The woman told the trial: "I felt invaded, disgusted. You should be able to walk down the street without someone attacking you."

Eyob claimed he had been drinking that evening and that he had only been "hugging and kissing" the woman.

His counsel Tony Graham put to him that it appeared from the video that he was doing more than that.

Speaking via an interpreter, Eyob replied: "I was persuaded. I have never engaged myself in criminal conduct.

"I believe in the bible and in Christ. I abide by the rules. I was drinking and it was Satan that created this situation."

Eyob was an asylum seeker and had been in Scotland seven months at the time of the attack.