An Inverness athlete is facing jail after being convicted of raping a young woman.
Daniel McFarlane, who was previously one of the top performers in the Scottish universities and colleges track and field championships at Grangemouth, preyed on the victim at her flat in Glasgow’s Finnieston.
The 23-year-old, a former medical student, later contacted a friend to admit he had done “despicable things” – then tried to get him to delete the messages.
McFarlane denied the crime, claiming any admission of guilt was “false”.
‘I did not rape her again’
But, he was convicted of two rape charges and attempting to defeat the ends of justice following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
First offender McFarlane, now of Inverness, will be sentenced later this month.
The attack occurred between December 2017 and February 2018.
McFarlane – also a talented amateur athlete – once struck after returning from a competition in Sheffield, Yorkshire.
The young woman went on to state to the attacker: “You cannot keep doing stuff like that.
“I cannot keep forgiving you for things that you have done to me.”
McFarlane was later confronted by a mutual friend in a series of messages.
In one, he claimed: “I did not rape her again.”
McFarlane then further said he knew he had “done things that are despicable”.
His lawyer Lorenzo Alonzi asked: “Why did you say that?”
Further rape charge found ‘not proven’
He replied: “I was just trying to pacify them. They (victim and friend) were saying ‘you are a terrible person’ and I was saying ‘yes, just leave me alone’.”
McFarlane later told jurors that he “regretted” sending such messages as he was “admitting to things that he did not do”.
He insisted he did not rape the victim and asked for messages to be deleted as they were “false admissions”.
Jurors found a further rape charge and an accusation of assaulting the same woman not proven.
Mr Alonzi asked for McFarlane not to be remanded pending sentencing, citing a number of reasons including treatment the rapist is receiving for a health condition.
Lord Scott agreed to continue bail meantime and adjourned the case for reports.
