A north-east woman has spoken of her betrayal after she was sexually assaulted by a man she considered to be her friend.
Jaiden Frear, 29, was found guilty of sexually assaulting the woman at a friend’s house in Macduff after a night out, and while he believed she was asleep.
Frear appeared in the dock to be sentenced following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he was told he had narrowly avoided being sent to prison.
Instead, the calculated criminal was ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work.
Speaking to The Press and Journal after the case concluded, Frear’s victim, who wished to be known as Lana, described him as an “opportunist and a predator”.
She also told The P&J she would never be the person she was before the ordeal.
‘Heinous act has instilled a fear in me … his selfish actions have haunted me’
Lana said the impact of Frear’s “heinous act” had turned her life upside down and caused her to lose trust in men she didn’t already know.
“He has instilled a fear in me and I feel very uncomfortable around men, especially men who have been drinking. I don’t like men touching me in any shape or form,” she explained.
“In the years since it happened, his selfish actions have haunted me, and they continue to do so.
“It has 100% changed me as a person and I’ll never be the person I was again. He has altered my trust in people.”
‘It placed me in a really dark place in my life and it’s been a struggle’
Lana, who was 30 at the time of being victimised, was going through a difficult time after losing a close family member.
She said Frear – a friend at that time – knew she was in a vulnerable place and used it to his advantage, attacking her in the middle of the night.
The aftermath of Frear’s selfish actions is something she’s had to learn to live with.
“This has literally put me to hell and back on multiple occasions – emotionally, mentally and physically. It has had a huge impact and still does.
“It placed me in a really dark place in my life and it’s been a struggle.”
Lana has even sought counselling but said it “hasn’t taken away the trauma or destruction he’s caused in my life”.
She added: “He was someone I fully trusted and didn’t think would be capable of such a heinous act. In my mind, I’m still perplexed as to why?”
As Frear arrived for his sentencing hearing, defence solicitor Mike Monro told the court his client still maintained his innocence but “did not dispute the findings of the jury”.
The lawyer added: “Given the position of the accused, I believe that there is a viable alternative to a custodial sentence here.”
Sheriff Morag McLaughlin told Frear that a jury had convicted him of one charge and described it as “the most serious” charge he faced at trial.
“This is a serious matter and one in which a custodial sentence is often the most likely disposal,” the sheriff told him.
“But it seems to me that you need to do some programme work so that you know what is appropriate when in a relationship.
“I think you need to do a sex offenders programme. You might not think so, but believe me, you need to do that work.”
Unpaid work, restriction of liberty and rehabilitation programme
As an alternative to a prison sentence, Sheriff McLaughlin made Frear, of High Street, Cuminestown, subject to a community payback order and ordered him to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work.
She also ordered him to take part in a sex offenders programme while additionally imposing a restriction of liberty order.
Sheriff McLaughlin also placed Frear under a non-harassment order for five years.
Frear will also remain on the sex offenders register for five years.
For all the latest court cases in Aberdeen as well as crime and breaking incidents, join our Facebook group.
