Man who ‘controlled every part’ of woman’s life jailed for raping and assaulting her

A man who “controlled a woman’s life,” to the point that he stopped her seeking medical care after a miscarriage, has been jailed for repeatedly raping and assaulting her.

The man, 20, of no fixed address, and unnamed for legal reasons, was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment at Inner London Crown Court yesterday after being found guilty of rape, suffocation, actual bodily harm, assault by battery and coercive and controlling behaviour.

A conviction came after digital and medical evidence was needed in court, as the victim was too terrified to give her evidence.

The man raped the woman he knew in Southwark on four occasions in “violent circumstances,” on one occasion strangling her and on another holding a pillow over her face.

The Met said throughout their relationship the man controlled her everyday tasks. He would not allow her to collect a prescription without him, controlled her finances as well as prevented her from seeing friends and family.

If she attempted to leave the address, he would berate her or physically assault her by twisting her arms and legs, slapping and punching her and strangling her.

The victim managed to secretly film some of the abuse, which was used as evidence in the trial. There was also digital phone evidence including a video, believed to have been filmed by the man of the woman unconscious and then throwing water on her face to wake her up.

Detective Constable Michelle Elisio, from the Met’s Specialist Crime team, who carried out the investigation, said: “I would like to commend the courage and strength of the woman in reporting these offences to police and hope that she feels some comfort knowing her attacker is now behind bars.

“We worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure [the man] received this sentence, despite instilling so much fear in his victim that she didn’t feel able to speak in court.

“I hope [this] conviction sends a powerful message to others who feel trapped in a cycle of violence in an abusive relationship; please contact police – we have specially trained officers who will support you, investigate the allegations with the aim of putting those responsible before the courts.”

Specialist officers safeguarded the woman after she sought support from an Independent Domestic Violence Adviser (IDVA).

She provided two victim interviews during which she explained her abuse.

The Met said that on a later date she withdrew her allegation “showing the complexity and sensitivity of the case and the challenges of being able to investigate the crimes to secure a sentence”.

PC Alice Pyne, a specialist officer supporting the victim-survivor throughout this investigation, said: “We fully understood why the victim-survivor withdrew her statement. We did not let this deter us, we continued to work tirelessly to ensure this man would never be able to harm her again and to give her all the support that she needed.

“I hope this investigation demonstrates the work we will do to put sexual offence perpetrators behind bars.”

(Picture: The Met)