Russell Pender, 70, showed “no remorse” after being convicted of crimes, including the rape of a six-year-old, committed between 1972 and 2021 and “laughed” when his sentence was being discussed.
At a trial in December, the jury at the High Court in Glasgow unanimously found him guilty of 18 serious sexual offences against six victims.
He returned for sentencing today (Thursday) and Judge Louise Arrol KC told him: “You perpetrated sustained and repeated abuse of the most vulnerable people you had exposure to.
“You presented as a safe place for each individual but that could not have been further from the truth.”
She added: “The social work report noted that you continued to deny the offences, and showed no remorse.
“Indeed, you laughed when discussion took place about the length of sentence to be imposed.”
Pender was given an Order of Lifelong Restriction (OLR) which means the parole board will only consider a date for his release once he has served his full sentence and his risk to the public has been assessed.
He would also be subject to conditions and monitoring for the rest of his life.
After reading a detailed risk assessment on Pender, Judge Arrol told him: “Your personality pathology, denial, paedophilic disorder and sexual deviance are chronic, stable characteristics that I am told, are not anticipated to diminish with age alone.
“You lack empathy, remorse and fail to accept responsibility.
“You select the most vulnerable victims. Offending stopped because access to your victims was restricted. You will likely continue to commit sexual offences if at liberty.”
Outlining that the terms for an OLR had been met she continued: “From these reports, it is clear that you present a very high risk of causing sexual harm to individuals, particularly children and vulnerable persons.
“The public must be afforded protection from you.”
The judge added: “You will only ever be released from prison into the community if the parole board can be satisfied that public safety will not be endangered.”
Detective Inspector Keith Taylor, from Police Scotland, said: “Pender is a dangerous sexual predator who preyed on people in the most horrific way.
“I only hope they take some comfort from knowing their abuser is now behind bars and facing the consequences of his despicable actions.
“I know how difficult it can be to report crimes of this nature and would like to commend the victims for their honesty and strength during the investigation.
“Their information was vital in helping us build our case against Pender.
“Police Scotland is committed to fully investigating all reports of sexual crime – no matter who the perpetrator is or how much time has passed.
“I would urge anyone who has experienced any form of abuse to please contact us. We have specially trained support officers and work closely with partner agencies to ensure those responsible are held accountable and brought to justice.”
