A rapist who attacked a pregnant woman during a 20 year campaign of violent abuse has been jailed for 12 years.

John Fox was found guilty of a total of 21 charges of physical and sexual violence, including two charges of rape involving one woman and four charges of rape against a second victim, one of which was committed when the woman was pregnant.

Fox, who was assessed as posing a high risk of future sexual offending, was also placed on the sex offenders' register indefinitely.

The offences were carried out against a number women and children in the Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire areas between 1985 to the mid 2000's.

Fox attacked his first victim in 1985 by punching and throttling her, before going on to restrain the woman and rape her at a house in Aberdeen.

The 58-year-old then turned his violence on a girl from the age of four who was subjected to slaps and punches and was lifted off the ground by her neck and held against a door.

A second girl was assaulted from the age of three and was also slapped, hit and punched and had a knife thrown at her which struck her body.

Fox also attacked a boy from the age of three who was slapped, punched and kicked and had his neck grabbed and squeezed.

He throttled a second woman in 1991 and pushed his knee against her stomach while she pregnant.

Two years later he repeatedly punched and slapped a third woman and kicked her on the body before dragging her, forcing her onto a bed and raping her.

He later raped the woman again when she was pregnant.

Fox also carried out an indecent assault on the victim ignoring her repeated pleas for him to stop and attacked her while she was holding a baby.

He grabbed the woman's head and struck it off a door resulting in the child's head also hitting the door.

Fox's final offence occurred in April 2002 when he again attacked the boy, who was then aged 14, at a house in the Kingswells area.

He grabbed the teenager by the neck and throttled him, stood and stamped on his head and punched him in the face and to the body

A judge at the High Court in Edinburgh told Fox that the sentence he imposed was punishment for the "atrocious and sometimes cruel conduct" he perpetrated towards three women and three children.

Lord Uist said: "You now have to pay the price for the deplorable crimes you committed all those years ago."

Police Scotland have welcomed the sentence handed down to Fox at the High Court in Edinburgh on Wednesday following his conviction earlier this month.

They also praised the bravery of Fox's victims in disclosing their experience to officers which helped them make further enquiries and identify more people he had targeted, allowing investigators to build a complete picture of Fox's offending behaviour.

Detective Sergeant Ryan Morris said: "This case, and today's sentencing, shows how important it is for victims of any kind of abuse to come forward when they feel able to.

"It doesn't matter how much time has elapsed, allegations will be investigated thoroughly, and perpetrators will be brought to justice, regardless of the passage of time.

"Crimes of this nature are notoriously difficult to investigate, involving complex cases and requiring a sensitive and dedicated approach to support victims.

"Police Scotland will not tolerate domestic abuse in any form - sexual, verbal, physical or emotional. Our officers will address it head-on and are committed to preventing it destroying the lives of not only victims, but also of their children, family and friends."

Figures show that an incident of domestic abuse is reported roughly every nine minutes in Scotland but only one in four victims will disclose their experiences.