MAN BEAT UP HIS PARTNER AFTER SHE INTERRUPTED HIS COMPUTER GAMING
During their relationship, Keiran Pridmore committed multiple acts of assault against his then-girlfriend, one of which resulted in her requiring crutches.His defense attorney described the 29-year-old defendant as a 'aimless young man' without a history of stable employment.
Although Pridmore denied the abuse allegations, he was found guilty after a trial and maintained his innocence throughout.
Prosecutor Caitlin Brazel told Swansea Crown Court that Pridmore and the complainant had met in 2023 and started a relationship, with the defendant subsequently moving into her Swansea residence.
The court outlined a series of violent incidents starting with an altercation in July 2023, triggered when the victim disrupted Pridmore's gaming session.
The confrontation escalated physically, with the defendant pushing her to the ground, slapping her in the face, and kicking her legs.
Further incidents included Pridmore shoving his partner into a wall and radiator, forcing her onto a bed while pressing his knee into her forehead, and pulling her down steps in a garden.
During the latter, she twisted her ankle; initially, he refused her medical help but eventually allowed her to seek treatment, instructing her to lie about her injury to the nurses.
The injury required her to use crutches for four weeks.
The prosecutor also noted that during the relationship, Pridmore exhibited aggressive behavior during disputes, damaging objects such as punching a hole in a door in February 2024.
The abuse was officially reported to police in April 2024 after Pridmore threw his partner to the ground and grabbed her by the hair.
The woman managed to escape to a neighbor's house before police arrived.
Although he left the scene by then, police began inquiries, leading to his arrest a week later.
In police interviews, Pridmore provided a prepared statement denying the allegations.
Despite asserting his innocence during the trial, a jury convicted him in October of the previous year.
The victim’s statement, read out in court, revealed her mental health had drastically declined due to Pridmore’s actions.
She also mentioned losing contact with friends during the relationship and is now trying to reconnect.
Pridmore, of Terrace Road, Mount Pleasant, Swansea, had prior convictions for controlling behavior, two counts of assault causing actual bodily harm, and two counts of criminal damage at the sentencing hearing.
He has no previous convictions.
Defense lawyer Hywel Davies noted from the pre-sentence report that Pridmore maintained his innocence but acknowledged his role in inflicting violence and in the relationship's breakdown.
He suggested his client, an aimless young man with no meaningful employment record, might find work at a Swansea pub.
Judge Huw Rees commented that Pridmore deserved custody due to his behavior toward his then-partner and saw no fault in passing such a sentence.
However, he was willing to give the defendant a chance, warning him never to repeat his actions and emphasizing the distress caused to his family.
Pridmore was sentenced to 24 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, with requirements to complete a rehabilitation course and perform 180 hours of unpaid community work.
Additionally, a 10-year restraining order was imposed, prohibiting him from contacting his victim.
