A 36-year-old man from Ayr has been convicted of 15 offences against six former partners after a 14-year campaign of rape, domestic violence and coercive behaviour.
Steven Maclean was found guilty at the High Court in Paisley after a jury heard how women described living in fear during relationships with him. The offences began in February 2010 and continued until December 15, 2024, when police entered his home and found a distressed victim.
The 13-person jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on 13 charges and majority verdicts on two others. Maclean was cleared of two further allegations. He appeared from custody throughout the trial and remains held at Barlinnie prison.
Abuse spanning relationships with six women
The court heard that Maclean’s behaviour included physical and sexual assaults, threats, persistent phone calls and messages, monitoring women’s movements, controlling who they met and dictating their clothing and make-up.
In one relationship, which lasted two years, Maclean had sex with a person under 16. He was also convicted of hitting her face, spitting at her, repeatedly contacting her and insisting on accompanying or following her when she was with friends.
A former partner told the court that her first assault took place while the couple were watching the television programme Shameless. Prosecutors said Maclean made her feel responsible for what happened and used questions about who she had been with to make her feel guilty.
The court also heard that the woman wrote to Maclean while he was serving a prison sentence in 2012. Prosecutors said she had hoped he would change, but the evidence showed that his abusive behaviour continued.
Another woman was subjected to threats against her and members of her family. In 2022, Maclean threw a pot and its contents at her, despite having been on only a first date with her.
During another single date in August 2024, he shouted, swore and made offensive and threatening remarks. In a separate relationship in 2023, he controlled who his partner socialised with, repeatedly called and messaged her, locked a door and held her against her will, and struck her face several times.
Police intervention revealed distressed victim
Four of the women told the court that Maclean was having sex with them at the same time in 2024. The jury convicted him of three related charges.
One survivor described her relationship as a “horror show” and said she was frightened constantly. She said Maclean checked her phone and controlled what she wore and how she applied make-up.
She also took the blame for a collision that Maclean caused. He was accused of seizing her face and the steering wheel, causing the vehicle to hit a wall, before taking her phone to stop her reporting the incident. The witness said he threatened to punch her teeth down her throat.
The case began to unravel after a witness saw Maclean with a woman and contacted police anonymously. Officers knocked at the property the following day and then forced entry, finding the woman with him.
The victim only disclosed the rape after Maclean had been removed from the home. Prosecutors said police witnesses described her distress, while a neighbour had heard disturbances from the property.
At that time, Maclean was already subject to three bail orders issued in 2024 for charges that were later combined into the High Court case.
Sentence deferred until October
The Crown argued that the evidence showed a consistent pattern of threatening, controlling and coercive conduct, with a link between Maclean’s domestic and sexual offending.
Michael Anderson KC, defending Maclean, told jurors that evidence of alcohol, drugs and the passage of time could create reasonable doubt. He also argued that the evidence of one woman could not be tested because she had not engaged with the justice system.
The jury rejected the defence arguments and convicted Maclean on 15 of 17 charges. Judge John Neil McCormick deferred sentence until October 29.