Assault victim held underwater by partner feared she would drown

She feared the end had come, Mold Crown Court was told.

Jordan Pears, a Mid Wales slaughterman, was jailed after he admitted twice assaulting the woman – once by squeezing her throat and a second time by holding her under the bath water.

Pears, 24, of Cae Gwyn, Llanidloes, also admitted putting her in fear of violence by harassment and was jailed for a total of 16 months.

An indefinite restraining order was made not to approach her in any way, including by social media.

But the judge said that if in the future he wanted to make contact with his child that would have to be through a solicitor.

Judge Niclas Parry said Pears had subjected his former partner to “sinister and controlling behaviour”.

Within weeks of starting the relationship he was strangling her and squeezed her throat until she struggled to breathe, having put her to the floor.

A month later at a hotel when she was having a bath he put her head under the water.

“She thought the end had come for her,” he said.

'Menacing'

After she made her way to the bedroom he again put her on the floor and squeezed her so that she could not breathe.

The victim had made it clear that she wanted nothing more to do with him but he “bombarded her with messages which were menacing and intimidatory.”

Judge Parry said that he took into account Pears' guilty pleas, his own vulnerabilities and health issues.

He said that he could not ignore the “surprising and unacceptable delay” in the case.

The victim had been regarded as being at high risk and the defendant as a dangerous man, but it had taken five months for the defendant to be brought to court.

Jo Maxwell, prosecuting, said that the first assault dated back to July last year, the second was in August of last year and the harassment took place between December last year and March this year.

Jealous

They started a relationship in May of last year but by the summer it was said to have become volatile.

In July they had been out socialising in Abergavenny before returning to her flat in Hereford where he was described as drunk and jealous.

He held her on the floor of the bedroom with both hands around her throat and squeezed so that she had difficulty breathing.

The defendant was abusive and made threats.

He slept and when he awoke, apologised and blamed alcohol.

She decided to give the relationship another chance but in August they were staying at a Hereford hotel when he became jealous and held her head under the bath water.

The prosecutor said: “She felt water rushing into her mouth and was genuinely concerned that she would drown.”

She was unable to free herself and when he eventually let go he told her “I told you not to make me jealous.”

Anxiety

Pears pushed her to the floor, climbed on top of her and put both hands around her throat, making it difficult for her to breathe.

Each time she tried to call out he squeezed tighter.

When the attack stopped she waited for him to sleep and went home.

After a few days Pears apologised and said he would stop drinking.

In September last year she found that she was pregnant, she agreed to see him in December but locked herself in the bathroom because of his behaviour.

Her uncle had to physically remove him from her flat but he continued to send her threatening messages on social media.

In a victim impact statement she said that she just wanted a happy and safe life with her child but found she had less trust in people, was looking over her shoulder and suffered anxiety.

Paul Smith, defending, said that the defendant knew it had to be custody.

He had a heart problem and previous mental health conditions.

Mr Smith said: “He recognises that he has to sort his life out.”

He needed to stop his alcohol and drug taking and get back to medical health treatment.

Pears, he said, did not “remember a tremendous amount about the offending and he deeply regrets it.”