A FORMER company director from Dunfermline has been jailed after being found guilty of rape.

Ruairi Murphy, 29, preyed on three women, who cannot be named for legal reasons, at locations in Fife between June 2009 and July 2018.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard how the web developer tied up his victims and subjected them to physical and verbal abuse.

Jurors heard that Murphy used sex toys on them against their wishes and ignored their pleas for him to stop.

One woman told of an occasion in May 2015 when he raped her at a house in Dunfermline.

The woman, who is aged 28, said: “He tied me up to the bed using his shoe strings. I didn’t want to do it at first because I am not into that type of thing but that’s what he wanted to do.

“He got nipple clamps and he put them on and I complained they were sore but he kept going.”

She said Murphy used a sex toy on her.

Prosecutor Mark Mohammed said: “Did you want him to do that?”

The woman replied: “No. I asked him to stop but he just kept going.”

The story emerged at the end of a four day trial in which jurors returned guilty verdicts to four charges of rape and one charge of indecent assault.

Another of Murphy’s victims said she was “quite fearful” of him.

The 28-year-old said that, one night when they were in bed watching TV, Murphy tried to have sex with her.

She told the court: “I believe I told him that I didn’t want to have sex.”

Mr Mohammed said: “Did you try to get him off?”

She replied: “I tried to but he had a couple of stone on me and I couldn’t get him off.”

The woman said that she was unable to stop Murphy from assaulting her.

She added: “I was tightly tied up. I couldn’t do anything.”

Murphy’s third victim told the court of how he intimidated her by calling her a “slut” and how he punched and slapped her.

The woman, who is aged 22, said that Murphy "wanted me to tie him and clamp his nipples”.

She did so until he told her to stop.

The woman added: “He then wanted to have sex and I said I didn’t want to it. He kept pushing. Eventually I gave in.”

Murphy was arrested after police learned of his activities and gathered enough evidence to bring him to court.

He told the court he had his own company and worked as a web developer.

Companies House state that he was a director of a firm called the Ruairi Murphy Group which was dissolved in June 2021.

Murphy said that sex with the women was consensual and told the court: “We were experimenting.”

He later added: “I would never be physically aggressive towards a female.”

Mr Mohammed asked Murphy why all three women could give accounts describing non consensual sex.

He said: “You must be a very unlucky man then if these three women say you have attacked them?”

Murphy replied: “If unlucky is the term we want to call it then yes.”

After the jury found him guilty, victim impact statements were submitted to judge Lady Wise. She also heard that Murphy had previous convictions.

He was placed on the sex offenders register and sentence was deferred for background reports.

Lady Wise told Murphy: "In light of the seriousness of the crimes for which you have been convicted of, I am revoking bail and remanding you in custody pending the sentencing diet.”

Murphy will be sentenced at the High Court in Edinburgh on June 9.