A MAN has been remanded in custody after being convicted by a jury of inflicting a brutal sexual assault on a woman in Muirkirk.

Gary Kerr denied the charge of sexual assault and physical violence when he faced trial last week, using the legal defence of consent.

The 46-year-old was found guilty of carrying out an extreme sex act on the victim to her injury at an address in the village on November 10 last year. The Chronicle has chosen not to fully detail the assault due to its graphic nature.

However, jury members at Ayr Sheriff Court found allegations that he had repeatedly punched the complainer on the head, seized her by the hair, punched her in the stomach, and lay on top of her not proven.

A second charge of causing her fear and alarm by shouting, swearing and using abusive names was dropped by prosecutors during the trial.

Giving evidence, the court heard the complainer say she felt like she had been hurt on the inside. 

Kerr told police in his interview following his arrest: “I didn't do it forcibly.”

Taking to the witness stand, Kerr said listening to the evidence throughout the trial felt ‘horrible’, and added: "It’s just a horrible thing to go through."

He said: “I just wouldn’t have done that [without consent]. I was able to tell from her body language.

"We tried to have sex, but couldn’t, so started doing other things."

Urging the jury to find Kerr guilty, procurator fiscal depute Edwin Sheeran told members: “Ask yourselves this question, why would she put herself through the ordeal of giving evidence and not be telling the truth?

“In her evidence, she told you how she found herself in the bedroom being punched to the head and [hurt internally].

"She said it was so painful [inside].

“In my submission you can confidently convict Gary Kerr of brutally sexually assaulting her, which led to her having to be medically examined."

Defence advocate Safeena Rashid said: “His position has consistently been it happened with her consent, he has never departed from that position.

"Gary didn't need to give evidence but did.

"An argument started and led to [complainer] leaving the house, she started the car, hit a fence, burst a tyre, then called police.

"Almost the entirety of the Crown case is how you find [the complainer] to be a credible reliable witness.

"When talking to the prosecutor she was teary, where did these tears go when she told me to 'f**k off'?"

The jury took around 90 minutes to reach its verdict last week, finding the allegations of physical violence not proven by majority - but finding Kerr guilty of the painful sexual assault on the woman.

Sheriff Mhairi MacTaggart said: "I'll be asking for social work background reports and a risk assessment.

"Due to the nature of the offence, as of today you will be subject to the notification requirements. You will remain in custody in the meantime."

Kerr, whose address is listed as HMP Kilmarnock, will return to court at a later date for sentencing.