Cheryl Cottrell was found guilty of sexual assault following the attack at the house party in Glasgow in May 2015
A gay man has revealed how he was driven to the brink of suicide and suffered post-traumatic stress disorder following a vile sex attack.
The 36-year-old, from Glasgow, was attacked by Cheryl Cottrell at a house party after she made several ‘sickening’ comments after finding out he was gay.
She asked if he would sleep with her and became angry when he tried to fend off her aggressive advances.
She then followed him into the kitchen and sexually assaulted him when he bent over to pick something up.
Cottrell was eventually found guilty of sexual assault and ordered to carry out 120 hours of community service. She was also placed on the sex offenders register.
But the film maker said the punishment didn’t match the crime and said his life had been ripped apart by the attack at the Glasgow house party in May 2015.
He said his relationship with his partner fell apart, he was forced to move home and he has flashbacks and severe panic attacks.
He said the trauma of the trial led to him developing post-traumatic stress disorder and he even contemplated suicide.
Cottrell denied attacking him but in August she was found guilty of sexual assault after a trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court
Waiving his right to anonymity, he told the Daily Record: ‘Some days, I can’t get out of bed because I’m still gripped by fear. I’ll go to get up and I’ll start sobbing uncontrollably.
‘I still feel empty, hopeless and upset. I felt like the only guy in the world going through the aftermath of this disgusting violence.’
Describing the horrific ordeal he said: ‘I couldn’t believe what was happening – it was a brutal and painful assault.
‘I was bleeding and felt like I was being raped by this horrible woman.’
Cottrell was found guilty of sexual assault and ordered to carry out a community payback order of 120 hours
Cottrell denied attacking him but in August she was found guilty of sexual assault after a trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
She was placed on the Sex Offender’s Register and ordered to do 120 hours of community service.
He said the punishment didn’t match the crime and claimed she had got off lightly.
‘The punishment was ridiculous. I’ve been told if it was man who did that to a woman, the sentence would be five years in prison’, he said.
He added: ‘The worst part was Cottrell thought it was hilarious and showed no signs of remorse…I wanted to throw away everything good in my life over one absolutely abhorrent woman. She’s pure evil.’
Cottrell was found guilty of causing fear and alarm to her victim. But she was admonished on that charge, meaning she received no fine or imprisonment.
She was found not guilty of a charge under section seven of the Sexual Offences act, covering indecent verbal communication.
Rape Crisis Scotland said under the law, the use of fingers to penetrate does not count as rape.
The organisation’s Sandy Brindley said: ‘Sexual offences can have a significant impact and it is important that sentences reflect the seriousness of the crime.’