Craig Stewart 34

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A Northampton man has been jailed for subjecting his former partner to months of domestic abuse, with the judge branding his behaviour "cowardly, cruel and unrelenting".

Craig Stewart, 34, of Helmdon Crescent, Kingsthorpe, appeared via video link from prison at Aylesbury Crown Court on July 15, with sentencing adjourned to September 2. He was convicted of controlling and coercive behaviour, plus two counts of assault by beating and three counts of causing actual bodily harm (ABH), committed between April and September 2021.

Stewart pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing on November 25, 2021.

Prosecutor Alex Radley told the court that two weeks into the relationship, Stewart demanded the victim's Instagram account be made private. The first violence followed a restaurant incident, where he slapped her at home and said she "deserved it".

Stewart called her constantly to check her activities, made derogatory comments about her outfits, called her names in public, checked her phone, and threatened to hurt her cat as it "threatened the undivided attention Stewart wanted".

Mr Radley detailed further violence, including headbutting, slapping, punching, and strangling. In one incident, "He strangled her with both hands and squeezed to the point where she couldn’t breathe. She thought he was going to kill her." Stewart also threatened to kill her and her family.

The final assault involved a torrent of abuse and punches to her head while she drove; she fled to a petrol station for help.

Stewart has 27 previous offences from 2009 to January 2020.

Defence barrister Karen Walton said Stewart accepts his behaviour was "frightening", noting his "depressing and sad background in relation to his family background and people he was close to when he was younger". She added: "He wishes to apologise unreservedly to the victim and accepts how terrifying his behaviour must have been."

His Honour Judge Francis Sheridan described Stewart's actions as "absolutely disgusting", adding: "We have to get the message across to the defendant that women are people in their own right. They are not and never will be your property.

"You have to learn that the court will do everything they can to protect them. If you are not prepared to stop, the sentences will get longer.

"I don’t know why this man was not charged with something more serious such as threats to kill. He should have been."

Stewart was sentenced to 45 months in prison, with an indefinite restraining order barring contact with the victim. He remains under an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) from a prior case.