A FORMER Ayrshire football coach has been found guilty of raping and sexually abusing children over a period of 19 years.

All of Stevenston man Russell Conn's victims were aged 16 or under when the offences were committed.

The 59-year-old was found guilty of six charges by a jury after a trial at the High Court in Paisley.

Conn was convicted of one charge of indecently assaulting a child under 16, two charges of lewd, indecent and libidinous practices and behaviour, one of which led to injury, and two charges under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 - one of rape, and one of sexual assault and sexual exposure.

The offences were committed between 1995 and 2014.

Conn was found guilty on Tuesday, November 15, following a trial which began on November 7.

The jury found Conn guilty of committing various offences within a motor vehicle between October 2, 1995 and December 31, 1996 at various locations, including the B780 near the Munnoch reservoir in Dalry, a layby on the B741 Dalmellington-Straiton road, and elsewhere.

He touched the victim, who was aged 15-16, inappropriately, performed sex acts on the victim and told the victim to perform sex acts on him.

Conn was also convicted of using lewd, indecent and libidinous practices and behaviour towards a boy aged 13-14 at an address in North Ayrshire between August 17, 2008 and August 16, 2009. 

He was also found guilty of uttering threats of violence towards the boy's family.

 

On another occasion, at his home in Stevenston, Conn pushed the same boy on to his couch and performed sex acts, injuring his victim.

 

Conn was also found guilty of a charge stating that at an address in Stevenston, in a vehicle parked at Stevenston Point car park and on a road close to Kilwinning fire station, and at other addresses in North Ayrshire, he sexually assaulted a boy aged 12-15 between January 2011 and December 2014.

In this case Conn directed sexualised remarks to his victim, exposed himself to him, and made the boy perform sex acts on him as well as performing sex acts himself.

The final charge on which Conn was convicted stated that on a single occasion between January 2011 and December 2014, within a vehicle parked at a location in Ayrshire, he performed a sex act on a boy before raping him.

 

Conn was remanded in custody following the jury's verdict; he will be brought back to court for sentencing next month.