A VILE rapist who abused children and passed a young girl around a gang of paedophiles has been locked up for 12 years.
Thomas Nelson carried out the “despicable” acts of sexual violence at a number of areas in Scotland, including the Wee County, between the mid-1990s and mid-2000s.
The 54-year-old denied that he had repeatedly abused the four youngsters – but was found guilty following a trial at The High Court in Edinburgh last week.
Lord Uist, presiding, described Nelson’s conduct as appalling, while the police officer who the investigation labelled the former solider a “very dangerous man”.
During his trial he admitted a further four charges of neglecting children who were exposed to drugs and weapons.
The jury was played footage of the rape victim, now 19, while she was being questioned about her horrifying ordeal at the hands of Nelson.
She said his friends would hit her and give her bruises and leave “loads of marks” on her back and arms.
She added: “I have kept it all this time to myself.”
The woman said she would scream out for help as she was attacked, and that one assault made her physically sick.
She said: “They had sex with me but I was only five years old. That’s not right. I was far too young. I was used to that sort of thing. I thought it was normal. I wanted to go outside and have fun.”
She said that Nelson told her she was to go to houses of friends of his where she was subjected to sexual abuse.

Defence counsel David Nicholson told that court that his client had formerly served in Northern Ireland with the army.
He said: “He struggled having left the army and he thinks his addiction to drink started at that point. He has had serious alcohol problems ever since.”
Nelson was put on the sex offenders’ register, by Lord Uist who said that two of the six charges he was found guilty on were “particularly despicable”.
The judge told him: “The course of conduct in which you indulged towards the children in question was quite appalling.
“They involved you providing on several occasions a girl aged between four and six to other men so they could have sexual intercourse with her and on one occasion you had sexual intercourse with her yourself.”
Nelson, formerly of Pilrig Street, Edinburgh, had denied two charges of raping the girl in 2002 and 2003, a charge of assaulting her by permitting and encouraging other males to have sex with her and rape her between 2001 and 2003 and a charge of physically assaulting her.
He was found guilty of all the offences apart from one rape charge on which the jury returned a not proven verdict.
Nelson was also found guilty of assaulting two young boys, one of whom he put a gun to his head and placed hot spoons on his skin, and of another offence of indecency against a girl when she was 13 or 14 in 2006 and 2007.
Nelson committed his catalogue of offending at houses across the Edinburgh area and at an address in Clackmannan, between 1994 and 2007.
Speaking after the 12-year sentence was handed out, Detective Inspector Donnie Macleod, of the Public Protection Unit in Edinburgh, reminded the public that time is no barrier to justice.
He said: “This is one of the most appalling cases of child abuse I have seen. He was in a position of trust, yet Nelson systematically abused these children and their lives continue to be affected by the wilful neglect and horrifying acts he inflicted on them.
“Upon receiving information about some of the crimes he committed, a detailed investigation was carried out which uncovered this sickening catalogue of offending.
“Nelson’s crimes make him a very dangerous man – and his failure to admit what he has done only amplifies that. He will be monitored by the authorities following the prison sentence that is to come.”
DI Macleod added: “We will continue to investigate should we receive any information about Nelson’s associates. We believe that he allowed up to 20 other men to rape the young girl and I would urge anyone with any knowledge of this to contact police or Crimestoppers so we can make further inquiries.”