DOMESTIC ABUSER CURTIS HUGHES JAILED FOR CAMPAIGN OF VIOLENCE AND CONTROLLING BEHAVIOUR
A domestic abuser named Curtis Hughes, aged 24, was sentenced at Durham Crown Court for a series of violent and controlling behaviours against his former partner.Hughes was convicted of controlling and coercive behaviour, criminal damage, stalking, intimidation, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and common assault.
He had previously pleaded guilty to these offences.
The court heard that Hughes had been in a relationship with the victim for around three years, during which he violently attacked her on multiple occasions, including slamming a door in her face, smashing her belongings, and threatening her life.
Hughes also inflicted injuries, such as punching her in the face, causing bruising, and damaging her phone and her mother's car.
The victim described her suffering, stating she was left so frightened she lost six dress sizes after living on painkillers and Red Bull, and that Hughes had 'robbed her of her happiness' and 'taken everything'.
Hughes’s criminal record includes twelve previous offences, including battery and threats to kill, which were also committed against a former partner.
The court was informed that Hughes had been stalking the victim, threatening to burn her house and her mother’s house, and even filmed himself in her home after causing damage.
On May 24, he assaulted her, dragged her out of her car, and made threats involving self-harm and harm to her family.
Additionally, Hughes smashed a window of a pub, causing £880 in damages.
Defence lawyer Katie Spence described Hughes as displaying 'a level of immaturity' and expressed hope that he would turn his life around, citing his support network and plans to start a property maintenance business.
The judge, Nathan Adams, sentenced Hughes to 54 months in prison, citing that he posed a 'significant danger to partners.'
