Man jailed for abduction and rape of girl, 15, in Edinburgh basement

She was taken into a room strewn with rubbish, forced onto a mattress on a makeshift bed and raped.

Strachan warned her not to tell anyone about the attack or he would find her and hurt her.

He was caught days later after being spotted on a street by police officers.

Strachan, a former athlete with Edinburgh Athletic Club, also admitted repeatedly stabbing a man on the hand with a knife, causing severe injury, hours before the rape.

And he further pled guilty to attacking another man on the head with a claw hammer to the danger of his life on 28 May.

He was brought to the High Court for sentencing on 13 January this year, but fled the GEOAmey escort while being moved to a waiting vehicle.

Strachan admitted attempting to defeat the ends of justice by breaking free from his handcuffs and running off into the Royal Mile which sparked a mass manhunt.

He was detained by police a short time later.

Faye Cook, procurator fiscal for High Court sexual offences, said Strachan's actions were "calculated, predatory, and caused profound harm".

She added: "Although this type of stranger offending is rare, this conviction reflects the gravity of his crimes and the commitment of prosecutors and police to bring him to justice."

The sentence imposed on Aaron Strachan does not mean he'll walk out of prison after five years - instead, it could keep him behind bars for decades, if not the rest of his life.

The minimum five year jail term is highly misleading and arguably forms the least important part of the order for lifelong restriction (OLR).

The judge Michael O'Grady KC said: "I consider that in view of the level of risk you present to the public, you are likely to remain in prison for many years, if indeed you are ever released."

An OLR starts with what's called the punishment part - the bare minimum prisoners have to serve before they can be considered for parole.

In an unusually detailed sentencing statement, judge O'Grady noted that calculating punishment parts is "with good reason" much misunderstood by victims and members of the public.

He made it clear that the five-year term did not reflect his view on when Strachan should be released.

Once the punishment part has expired, Strachan will only be freed if the parole board decides he no longer presents a threat. Lifelong supervision would follow.

Late last year, there were 277 prisoners serving OLRs and of the 224 who had completed the punishment part of their sentence, only 14 had been freed.

In short, it's extremely difficult to get out of jail if you're handed an OLR.

Strachan appeared pleased with the five year term when he was leaving the dock.

Once he's confronted with the reality of the sentence, his view is likely to change.