A 50-year-old grandfather convicted of sexually assaulting his ex-wife was already a convicted rapist, it was revealed in Supreme Court yesterday.

Puisne Judge Norma Wade-Miller sentenced the Pembroke Parish man to six years for sexually assaulting his ex-wife.

For the second count of unlawful entry the man was sentenced to a one-year concurrent prison sentence.

Neither the man's nor the woman's name can be revealed for legal reasons.

The couple was married from 1979 to 1989, but continued an "on and off'' relationship for many years after their divorce.

During the three-day trial jurors heard how the man unlawfully entered his former wife's bedroom at her sister's house around 4 a.m. on July 1.

Earlier the woman told the five-man, seven-woman jury she agreed to give her ex-husband a ride home to avoid a disturbance in her sister's household.

En route to the man's apartment, the man made repeated sexual overtures. But the victim told the court she felt "in control of the situation''. Once at the man's apartment, sexual overtures became sexual demands.

He forced both oral sex and intercourse without the woman's consent.

And he threatened to "tie her up'' if she didn't "submit to his needs''.

In mitigation, defence lawyer Elizabeth Christopher told the court the victim was aware of the man's past record.

He has numerous previous convictions stemming from 1972. They include wilful damage, assault and bodily harm, unlawful assault, unlawful entry, intruding upon the privacy of a female, and breaking and entering.

In some of the offences, the victims were family members of his ex-wife.

The court also heard that the man was sentenced to six years in prison in 1988 for rape.

And in 1995 the self-employed painter was convicted for deprivation of liberty and assault upon his ex-wife.

"She persisted in the relationship,'' Ms Christopher said. "During the time he was doing time she was visiting him in Westgate (Correctional Facility).'' She suggested there was a "lesser degree of defilement'' felt by the victim when she knew the assailant.

But Crown counsel Charlene Scott requested "nothing less than six years'' be given for the man's most recent offence.

However, she conceded that "six to nine years would be appropriate when looking at the history of the relationship''.

But when Ms Christopher asked the judge to take into account the defendant's age, Mrs. Wade-Miller answered: "Now that he's older he should be a little wiser.'' The man spoke briefly to the court before his sentence was passed.

"I sat and listened attentively to all the evidence,'' he said.

"If I had been on the jury, I would have found me guilty too.'' Explaining that he and his ex-wife had known each other for two decades, he added: "I'm truly sorry for the circumstances that happened to us.'' Mrs. Wade-Miller stressed the serious nature of the offence, but agreed the seriousness was lessened when committed by someone who was "not a total stranger''.