SWANSEA MAN JAILED FOR ABUSIVE DOMESTIC CONTROL AND FALSE IMPRISONMENT
A man named Shane Bowen was convicted of coercive and controlling behaviour as well as false imprisonment.He was found to have held his girlfriend prisoner in a cupboard, controlling her access to money and contraception, and abusing her physically and emotionally.
The court heard he began abusing his girlfriend approximately six months into their relationship, regularly assaulting her with throttling, headbutts, and accusations of infidelity.
At one point, Bowen battered the woman when she ordered from the wrong Chinese takeaway, throwing plates at her and slamming her head into a wall before making her clean up the mess.
He also prohibited her from having her own mobile phone, withdrew her benefit money, and forced her to ask for handouts.
In police evidence, his victim described feeling like a "slave".
Bowen also restricted her contact to family and friends and controlled her access to birth control.
He once told her that he assaulted her "because he loved her." The victim initially refused to cooperate with police investigations.
Bowen had previous convictions for assault, robbery, public order offences, and domestic violence.
In March 2020, he was jailed for 12 weeks for attacking his girlfriend in a bar, but was released after serving half the sentence.
He returned to her house in a rage and accused her of sleeping around.
Bowen later breached a police protection order multiple times, resulting in additional detention.
Most recently, Bowen was sentenced to up to two years in prison, with the possibility of serving half before being released on license, and was handed a five-year restraining order banning contact with the victim.
