COURT INCREASES SENTENCE FOR MAN’S “CAMPAIGN OF ABUSE”
A 27-year-old man accused of subjecting his former partner to a sustained period of harassment has seen his prison sentence lengthened after an appeal lodged by the Solicitor General.Jordan Crewe, who formerly resided in Caerphilly, was initially sentenced to two years in prison in February following his admission to charges of harassment, coercive and controlling behaviour, assault causing actual bodily harm, and intentional strangulation.
On Thursday, the Court of Appeal, comprised of three senior judges, increased his sentence to two years and ten months.
Lord Justice Stuart-Smith, sitting alongside Mr Justice Goose and Mrs Justice Eady, noted that the victim reported she had been diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and panic attacks as a result of Crewe’s actions.
She described herself as “a shell of the person she used to be.” The court was told that Crewe’s conduct constituted a “campaign of denigrating behaviour,” characterized by episodes of violence.
Jennifer Newcomb, representing the Solicitor General, stated that Crewe had previously received a 16-month sentence in March 2022 for offences against his former partner.
After his early release on licence, he forcefully entered her home and damaged her car’s tyres in October of that year.
Despite being recalled to prison, he continued his harassment via letters, messages, and phone calls.
When released again in May 2023, his coercive behaviour included persistent messaging, secretly installing a tracker on her phone, threatening suicide, controlling her clothing choices, groping her in public, and forbidding her from seeing her family, Ms Newcomb explained.
The court also heard that in December 2024, Crewe bit his ex-partner’s face and deliberately strangled her while she was driving.
Vaughan Britton, representing Crewe, argued that the sentence was appropriate and not excessively lenient, citing Crewe’s ADHD diagnosis and a troubled childhood involving multiple foster placements that fell through.
However, Lord Justice Stuart-Smith dismissed these arguments, affirming that Crewe “was given every opportunity and did not take it,” and that the revised sentence was “the lowest appropriate sentence that could properly have been passed.” Following the judgment, Solicitor General Lucy Rigby KC MP condemned Crewe’s actions, saying: “Jordan Crewe’s tirade of abuse against his ex-partner was appalling.
He carried out a systematic campaign of violence and coercive control, which must have left his victim in a constant state of fear for their safety.
Thankfully, the court has recognised the severity of Crewe’s actions and increased his sentence, protecting his partner from coming to further harm.
My thoughts today are with his ex-partner, who was so brave to come forward.”
