Peter Syme/Andrew McWilliam
Posted in:Assault/Wounding, Kidnap/Abduction, Possession of weapons, Rape / Sexual Assault, Sexual Offences, Torture, Violent Offences
Tags: 10+ years imprisonment, 15+ years imprisonment, 5+ years imprisonment, Aberdeenshire, Aged 30-39, Aged 40-49, Andrew McWilliam, Autogynephilia, Balaclava, Changed name to conceal record, Extreme violence, Female victim, Home invasion, Jacqui McWilliam, Life sentence, Male prison, Male victim, Multiple victims, Peter Syme, Pre-transition, Pregnant victim, Prison transition, Refused transfer to women's prison, Reoffended while on licence/bail, Repeat offender, Scotland, Tayside, Trans woman, Victim impact statement
Peter Syme/Andrew McWilliam/Jacqui McWilliam, a violent male who identifies as a trans woman, was first convicted of sexual offences in 1989 after raping a pregnant woman (and attacking her husband) at gunpoint at their croft in Aberdeenshire. The woman was also subjected to having her hair shaved off. McWilliam (then known as Peter Syme) was sentenced to 12 years in prison at the High Court in Aberdeen.
Just months after being released in 1997, Syme/McWilliam abducted a woman at knifepoint, tied her up with a pair of stockings, sexually assaulted her and then drove around with her in the car for seven hours.
Syme/McWilliam promised he would not rape her or kill her as long as she did what she was told but she told the court she feared for her life throughout the ordeal. Syme/ McWilliam also used the victim's mobile phone to call her husband and demand he pack a bag with a short skirt, stockings, suspenders and her underwear. Thankfully she managed to escape at a petrol station and raise the alarm.
McWilliam was jailed for life in 1997 with at least at least 15 years to serve, and named by the judge as a "wholly dangerous man".
McWilliam also moved just 4 miles away from the first victim on release from prison, causing her great distress and making her too afraid to leave her home.
In 2018, The Scottish Sun reported that McWilliam's application to transfer to a women's prison had been rejected although it's not clear if this was due to the appalling offending against women or to being too early in the transition process.
A list of of over 40 trans-identified males who transitioned while serving long sentences for rape and other serious violent crime is available via this tag.
See, too, the trans-identified male rapist, Karen White, who also raped a pregnant woman (and subsequently sexually assaulted women in HMP New Hall).
Link to McWilliam's dismissed appeal https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/search-judgments/judgment?id=e7c586a6-8980-69d2-b500-ff0000d74aa7
Photo via Scottish Sun
The Scottish Sun https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/3074307/andrew-mcwilliam-rape-woman-cornton-vale-glenochil-transfer/ archive
Herald Scotland https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12285232.Attack_came_only_months_after_release_Freed_rapist_faces_life_sentence_for_abduction/ archive
Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/thisneverhappens/comments/97v56z/peter_syme_aka_andrew_mcwilliam_transitions_to/
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