Frank Scott, 48, has been jailed for 22 years for raping a woman and a man in Manchester while on bail for the first attack. The two victims, attacked six months apart, held hands in court as he was sentenced at Minshull Street Crown Court.
First attack in Chorlton Street car park
Scott targeted his first victim in June 2025 as she made her way home from a night out. The woman, struggling to cope following a bereavement, had been 'self-medicating' with alcohol and crack cocaine, the court heard. She became separated from friends and was 'disorientated' when Scott approached her offering directions, prosecutor Jessica Foster said.
After agreeing she could use his crack pipe, Scott took her to the car park on Chorlton Street where he was sleeping rough. He pinned the woman down and forced her to drink vodka. Scott sexually assaulted her before raping and orally raping her. He dragged her along the floor as she tried to escape and 'smashed' her head on the concrete.
The woman hit him over the head and ran away. Naked, she was eventually helped by passers-by. The victim suffered 67 injuries. Scott was arrested and bailed pending further enquiries, having denied the offences.
Second attack in Sackville Gardens
Less than six months later, in November last year, he struck again at nearby Sackville Gardens. A man sleeping rough was offered what he believed was a cigarette by Scott. It was actually crack cocaine. 'Everything slowed down', Ms Foster said, adding: "When he came to, he was in a different part of the gardens and there was a crack pipe in his mouth. The defendant told him to 'kiss it, just f***ing kiss it'."
Scott groped and orally raped the man, telling him to 'shut the f*** up' when he screamed. He was arrested four days later and denied the offences.
Victim impact statements
In a statement, the woman said she 'thought [she] would never get out of that car park', adding: "I was begging people for help and lots of passers-by ignored me. I thought help would come, but it never did. I struggle to sleep and I have panic attacks. I get scared about who will walk past me. I feel confused about how someone could do that and feel numb. How can I carry on as if everything is normal?"
The male victim said he has been left with PTSD and that his drinking habit has worsened. "Sometimes I can still smell [Scott]," he added. "It takes me back and I am physically sick. I am constantly on edge. I can't be alone any more and I've lost trust in others. I am scared to use homeless services as there are people there who use the same drugs. I've been trying to block out that night. Sometimes I am angry at myself. But it's Frank Scott's fault this has happened."
Sentencing and previous convictions
Judge Jenny Lester-Ashworth said the fact Scott carried out the second attack while on police bail for the first 'was of considerable public concern'. "It is not for me to make findings, but perhaps the circumstances should be reviewed to see if lessons can be learned," she added.
Scott has 54 previous convictions for 91 offences, none sexual in nature but several for assault against emergency workers; threatening behaviour; and arson. Defence barrister Stuart Duke said Scott's 'only mitigation' was 'sparing the victims the ordeal of a trial', having pleaded guilty to two counts of oral rape and one count of rape on the day of a scheduled trial this summer.
The judge jailed him as a 'dangerous predator', who will be on licence until he is in his 70s. "You told the first victim that she would not get away and nobody would find her," she told Scott. "Her vulnerability, running away naked, is striking in CCTV footage. You took her dignity from her. She has regained it in reporting you to police and being prepared to give evidence against you."
"The second victim blames himself at times. But drink or drug use never excuses rape or transfers responsibility from offender to victim." Scott, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 22 years. He will spend eight years on extended licence upon release.
