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Gary Di Folco, 33, jailed for nine years after raping and abusing two women
Former chef Gary Di Folco has been sentenced to nine years in prison for a campaign of physical and sexual abuse against two women between June 2013 and April 2019.
In one attack, Di Folco dragged a victim by the hair in the middle of the night to a secluded spot near Mill Glen Reservoir in Ardrossan. She fled the car but he chased her, pushed her over the bonnet and raped her as she begged him to stop. The court heard he “used rape as a punishment” against her. He denied the offence and claimed they had been playing “naked tig.”
Prosecutor Greg Farrell told jurors: “He dragged her by the hair and drove her in the dead of night to a secluded area. She got out the car and ran. She knew what was in store. Di Folco chased her, pushed her over the bonnet of the car and raped her as she begged him not to.”
The same victim was raped at other times, including on a beach in Ardrossan, and was repeatedly slapped and choked. She was described as left “chalk white” in fear; neighbours often heard the assaults. She called him a “controlling man” with an “explosive temper.”
A second victim was raped and abused at a house in Saltcoats. Di Folco tracked her location with phone apps and accused her of cheating on him.
At the High Court in Glasgow, Judge Tom Hughes said: “What is clear is the sequence of the charges are very serious indeed involving two women. I have read the victim impact statements provided to the court and the consequences your conduct has had on them.”
Di Folco will be supervised for a further three years after release. A 10-year non-harassment order bans him from contacting either woman. His lawyer, Lorenzo Alonzi, told the court he continues to deny the offences.