SENTENCING STATEMENTS

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HMA v Adam Pentacost

Apr 29, 2024

Between 19 and 26 February 2024 at the High Court of Justiciary at Edinburgh Adam Pentacost stood trial on charges of contraventions of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and sexual offence charges. At the close of the Crown case he pled guilty to being concerned in the supply of cannabis and cocaine. The trial proceeded in relation to the sexual charges. On 26 February 2024 the jury convicted him of 5 sexual charges. On 29 April 2024 at the High Court of Justiciary at Edinburgh Lord Doherty sentenced him to 12 months’ imprisonment for a contravention of section 28 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 and to a cumulo extended sentence of 13 years’ imprisonment for 4 offences of rape and for the drugs offences, made up of a custodial term of 11 years and an extension period of 2 years.

Lord Doherty delivered the following sentencing statement:

“Adam Pentacost you have been convicted of 2 drugs offences and 5 sexual offences.

I have regard to all that has been said on your behalf and to the contents of the Criminal Justice Social Work Report including the risk assessment within that report, and to the victim impact statements from both complainers. I also have regard to your record of previous convictions. These include a conviction for assault with intent to rob in 2009 for which you were sentenced to two years’ detention; offences of theft and battery for which you were sentenced to 8 months’ imprisonment in 2014; and a further offence of battery for which you were sentenced to 4 months’ imprisonment in 2015.

The drugs offences involved you being concerned in the supplying of cannabis and cocaine. While there was evidence from one witness which suggested that your drugs operations involved large quantities of drugs and cash, I shall give you the benefit of the doubt and proceed on the basis that the opinion evidence from the police drugs expert tends to indicate that the scale of your dealing was more modest, although still significant. You pled guilty to these offences at a very late stage. There is no utility justifying a discount in the sentence for them because of the late plea.

The sexual offences involved 2 complainers. You had underage sex with the first complainer on one occasion when she was 15 and you raped her on one occasion when she was 16. You raped the second complainer on three occasions when she was 16. You were roughly double their age at the time. Your conduct was predatory. There were significant elements of planning on your part. In each of the rapes force was used by you. Two of the rapes of one of the complainers took place when she was under the influence of drugs which you had supplied to her. On none of the occasions you penetrated the complainers did you wear a condom. On two occasions you ejaculated inside the complainers. On one occasion a complainer contracted a sexually transmitted infection as a result of being raped by you. These offences have had serious emotional and psychological consequences for both complainers as is apparent from their victim impact statements. You have expressed no remorse for these offences, and you continue to deny your guilt of them.

I shall sentence you first for the contravention of section 28 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009, which is the least serious of the sexual offences. The sentence which I impose for that offence is 12 months’ imprisonment.

I shall impose a cumulo sentence for the four rape offences and the drugs offences. I am satisfied that the period for which you would otherwise have been on licence would not be adequate to protect the public from serious harm from you when you are eventually released from this sentence. For that reason, I am going to pass on you an extended sentence of 13 years’ imprisonment which is in two parts. The first part of the sentence is a custodial term of 11 years’ imprisonment. But that custodial term of 11 years is not the end of the extended sentence. The second part of the extended sentence will be served in the community. From the date of your release, you will be under licence for an extension period of 2 years. The conditions of your licence will be fixed by the Scottish Ministers. If during this extension period you fail to comply with the conditions of your licence, it may be revoked; and you may be returned to custody for a further period in respect of this case. The court also has power to deal with you if you commit another offence after your release and while you are on licence.

I am conscious of the requirement that the totality of the sentences should not be excessive. With that in mind I shall make them concurrent and I shall backdate both sentences to 4 November 2022, the date you were remanded in custody.

You are subject to the notification requirements of Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 for an indefinite period.”

29.04.24