Caernarfon thug attacked his partner with a scaffolding pole before refusing to let her leave house
An abusive man hit his partner with a scaffolding pole. A few months later Barry Jones strangled the same woman.
The 44-year-old, of Cae Bold, Caernarfon, pleaded guilty to assault causing actual bodily harm and intentional strangulation in the incidents in Caernarfon. A judge today jailed him for 25 months and 17 months respectively for those offences, with the sentences to run concurrently.
Mold Crown Court heard the woman had moved to North Wales where she felt lonely and isolated. In the first incident one day last summer he accused her of stealing.
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He punched her in the chest and hit her with the metal pole between her legs, leaving her bleeding and barely able to walk. He wouldn't allow her to leave his home afterwards, the court heard. You can sign up for all the latest court stories here
A bedroom lock had no handle but Jones fed a "binding" through the lock where the handle would have been, said prosecutor David Mainstone. Jones didn't let the woman out of the bedroom until the following afternoon.
Then in the second incident in March this year he made allegations against the woman and grabbed her and squeezed her neck. The following day the woman went to a friend's flat. Jones turned up and made unfounded allegations about her.
The woman was so frightened she hid behind the sofa. She said she didn't believe Jones had been taking his medication for his mental health problems.
Police were called and Jones was arrested. In a statement, the victim says since she was assaulted she now suffers epileptic fits. She has had to move away and is struggling financially.
Anna Price, defending, said her client is sorry. A former forklift truck driver and mechanic, he had a heart attack three years ago and is currently taking medication for schizophrenia.
The judge His Honour Rhys Rowlands imposed the jail sentences and made a ten-year restraining order prohibiting Jones from contacting his victim.
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