EUNICE SPRY'S HORRIFIC CRIMES IN ECKINGTON AND GLOUCESTERSHIRE: A CHILD ABUSE NIGHTMARE REVEALED

In September 2015, the community was shaken once again as Eunice Spry, a woman previously convicted of heinous child abuse, was seen enjoying a routine trip to the local supermarket near her bail hostel in Gloucestershire, just months after her release from a 14-year prison sentence. The 71-year-old Jehovah’s Witness, distinguished by her blue overcoat, thick glasses, and dyed hair, appeared unaware of the storm of outrage her freedom had reignited among her victims and the public alike.

Spry’s history is one of unimaginable cruelty. She was responsible for a prolonged campaign of physical and psychological torment inflicted upon her three foster children—Victoria, Alloma, and Christopher—whom she took in starting in 1991. Over the years, her abuse escalated to levels that shocked the nation. She was convicted on 26 charges of child cruelty, including unlawful wounding, assault, and cruelty to a person under 16, and sentenced to 14 years in Bristol Crown Court. Despite her incarceration, her release last year has caused distress among her victims and their families.

Victoria, now 30, recounted her harrowing experiences, revealing that she endured abuse in homes in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, and Eckington, Derbyshire, before finally escaping in 2005. Her reaction to seeing Spry’s photograph was one of revulsion. “She’s aged, but it’s her,” Victoria said, her voice trembling. “She’s got the same gawky dress style. She doesn’t seem to be looking after herself. I have nothing to say to her and I never want to see her again.” Victoria described the trauma as so severe that she learned to shut down emotionally, a defense mechanism against the relentless abuse she suffered.

Sources indicate that Spry has since moved from her hostel in Birmingham and has been re-housed somewhere in the Midlands. Unbeknownst to her, she has been traveling on buses and attending Jehovah’s Witnesses meetings, seemingly unaware that her past crimes are widely recognized. Her brutal regime included beatings, starvation, and bizarre punishments such as forcing her victims to drink bleach and urine, eat their own vomit, and stand naked and cold for hours. Reports suggest she recently returned to Tewkesbury, a mere ten miles from where Victoria now lives with her two young children. Victoria expressed her fears, saying, “It’s scary. I’m worried she might be stalking me. I don’t know why she would go back. So many people there hate her and would recognize her.” She also described returning to her childhood home, which had been vandalized and covered in graffiti.

Victoria’s account of her suffering is heart-wrenching. She recalls being forced to eat cat food as punishment for peeling labels off tins, sandpapered in the face, and kicked so hard she required ear surgery. Her social life was systematically destroyed; she was forbidden from speaking to school friends, and her childhood was marked by constant fear and physical pain. Christopher, now 26 and working as a youth worker, also shared his story of enduring severe physical injuries, including damaged knees from beatings with a chair leg and being tied to a van and dragged across fields. He suffers from PTSD and chronic pain, sleeping only a few hours each night. “Spry is a torturous, twisted person, a psycho who we’re very lucky hasn’t killed someone,” Christopher said. “It’s frightening that she’s out in public again and could do this to another child. She’s good at gaining trust.”

Victoria’s journey to freedom was long and arduous. She was handed over to Eunice Spry at just 18 months old after her birth parents could no longer care for her. Her early memories are filled with violence, including an incident where Spry pried her jaws open with a spoon, causing bleeding. Her childhood was a series of brutal punishments, including being tied up naked for months, subjected to beatings, and forced to endure starvation and physical abuse. Despite these horrors, Victoria managed to teach herself to read and write, attend college, and now lives happily in Gloucestershire with her partner and her dogs. She hopes to establish a charity to support other abuse victims and to write a book about her experiences.

Victoria expressed her ongoing fears about Spry’s potential to track her down, especially since she has learned that Spry requested to be housed near her in Worcestershire upon release. “It’s dreadful, it’s heartbreaking,” she said. “I just want to feel safe and carry on with my life. I don’t ask for much, just to be secure. I never want to see her again. She’s a psychopath, and I worry she’ll find out where we are.” Despite her resilience, Victoria remains haunted by her past, but she is determined to rebuild her life and help others through her story. Her hope is to create a future where she can finally find peace, free from the shadow of her abuser.