Wrexham,North Wales - Jealous and possessive’ man from Wrexham jailed after assault

Published date: 19 November 2015 | 

Published by: Staff reporter
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A MAN described as a controlling bully assaulted his former partner after she ended their relationship and kept her in her home for more than 24 hours.

Nicholas Hughes was jailed for a total of 22 months at Mold Crown Court yesterday for harassing her after he had been released from custody for an earlier assault upon her.

The court was told the victim had since moved to an undisclosed address.

Hughes, of Ffordd Maelor, Wrexham, was told by the Recorder Gaynor Lloyd that the victim must have been petrified.

Prosecutor David Mainstone said Kelly Griffiths had been in a relationship with Hughes, 28, since March, but he was found to be jealous and possessive.

He would send threatening messages to males who liked her Facebook entries.

Hughes threatened to assault her and she ended the relationship.

He was remanded in custody after he assaulted her in May and on June 17 he was released and placed on a community order.

That very day he contacted her, she told him not to go to her her home but he did so, and was banging on the door. 

He left when she said she had called the police.

But two days later he was back and simply walked in through the unlocked back door.

He refused to leave, followed her around the house, picked up a knife in the kitchen and when he went upstairs, she was able to record him on her mobile phone holding the knife.

Hughes took the mobile phone off her when she tried to contact the police and disconnected the landline when she tried to use that.

He left, but when she got into a taxi with her baby to go to Wrexham, he got into the vehicle, would not leave, and followed her around town.

Hughes pestered her and she agreed to buy him a meal.

But in the early hours of the following morning she was asleep in her bedroom when Hughes appeared.

It was 3am and she thought he must have climbed in through the window, although he denied doing that.

He was drunk, refused to leave, and when she went to bed to try and sleep he would pull her out of the bed by her legs or tip her out of the bed.

Mr Mainstone said Hughes kept her awake and was aggressive towards her.

She begged him to leave, but he would not go, he would not allow her to leave, and he took her phone.

He grabbed her by the back door and pushed her back in.

Hughes assaulted her by grabbing her arms and twice grabbed her by the throat. She was held in a headlock in the kitchen.

Mr Mainstone said she was allowed to lie on the bed and was able to sleep for a couple of hours, and when she woke up he had taken the keys and would not let her out.

But later when he went for a shower she found the keys under the bed and was able to sneak out of the house with her baby daughter. 

She went to a friend’s house and police were alerted.

Interviewed, Hughes said they were still in a relationship and he had been invited to her house. He denied the allegations against him.

Hughes admitted harassment, putting her in fear of violence, by phoning her, attending at her home address, threatening her with a knife, and assaulting her.

In a victim impact statement, Miss Griffiths said she was absolutely petrified of him, feared what would happen on his release, and suffered sleep loss and nightmares. 

She had since moved to an undisclosed address.

The court heard Hughes had previous similar convictions involving previous partners.

The Recorder, Miss Lloyd, jailed Hughes for 21 months for harassment with an additional month consecutive for the earlier assault for which he received a community order. 

She also made an indefinite restraining order not to approach Miss Griffiths in any way, including by social media.

She told him his conduct was escalating and it had to stop.

He had assaulted her, threatened her, and took her keys and phone to control her for more than 24 hours.

“It must have been a terrifying experience for her,” she said.

He controlled and bullied her, assaulted her, and while the physical injuries were not the most significant, the emotional effect must have been significant and frightening.

“Your conduct was serious in the extreme,” she said.

Andrew Green, defending, said it was accepted it could only be immediate custody.  There was clearly an underlying problem that he was an alcoholic who reacted badly when relationships came to an end. 

He was keen to address those issues.