Man jailed for 12 years for fatal sex attack on pensioner

A young man who raped and killed a frail woman in her sheltered home was jailed for more than 12 years today.

Jay Soso was 18 when he carried out the fatal sex attack on 63-year-old Marie Reid, who treated him "like a grandson".

Her body was discovered on November 15 2010 after neighbours became concerned when they had not seen her for a number of days.

She was found in blood-stained nightclothes, lying on a sofa in the flat where she lived alone in Edinburgh's Easter Drylaw Way.

Soso, now 20, previously pleaded guilty to rape and culpable homicide. He has no previous convictions.

At the High Court in Edinburgh today, judge Lady Dorrian handed Soso an extended sentence, detaining him for 12 years and eight months.

She also ordered him to be supervised for a further five years on his release from custody.

Mrs Reid's son later spoke of his struggle to come to terms with losing his "sweet and loveable" mother in such a way.

Paul Reid, 31, of Edinburgh, said: "I just hope it never happens to anybody.

"It's hard to cope with, I'm struggling myself in life now. Losing my mum has been so hard. I've got so much anger towards Jay just now.

"I knew Jay since he was maybe eight or nine. I couldn't believe that Jay would do such a thing like this, he didn't seem the type. My mum treated him like a grandson."

Mr Reid - who was accompanied by his sister, Jacqueline Sanderson, 38 - revealed that Soso even offered him sympathy after his mother died.

"Now for me, knowing that he shook my hand and gave me condolences, that makes me even more angry towards him," he said.

Mr Reid described his mother as a kind woman who was always cracking jokes.

"She'd do anything for people in the community," he said. "She had a big heart."

Thanking police and prosecutors for their work, Mr Reid added: "I'm glad the door's been shut now.

"Hopefully I can get my life back together, Jacqueline can get her life back together and we can just get on with it, and my kids can now get on with their lives as well."

Jacqueline's husband, Gordon Sanderson, said the family was very happy with Soso's sentence.

The 54-year-old, of North Berwick, East Lothian, said: "The way I see it now, he's away and other women in the same situation are going to be safe from him. He's off the streets and the public's safe.

"Marie was so quiet, friendly and trusted people. She didn't deserve to go the way she did. To die the way she did, being left alone in that place for five days, is just horrible.

"We can't fathom what he was thinking to have actually done it. He must have snapped somewhere."

PA