A woman held captive by her new boyfriend and subjected to weeks of regular beatings was saved when a passer-by recorded her screams and sent them to police. When officers raided Peter Robinson's bedsit, there was blood on the mattress, carpet and walls, and the victim had a burst lip, black eye, redness around her neck and a swollen jaw.
Newcastle Crown Court heard she told police: "I thought I was going to die, thank you." Robinson, 40, of The Royalty, Sunderland, who has previous convictions for violence and was out on licence from a six years and nine months sentence for robbery, admitted false imprisonment and controlling and coercive behaviour.
Jail sentence and judge's remarks
He has now been jailed for six years and three months, with a three-year extended licence. A judge branded him a "controlling and violent bully".
Prosecutor Nick Murphy told the court Robinson met the woman, who was 29, on November 5 last year, when she was sleeping rough. Mr Murphy said a relationship "started immediately" and she quickly moved into his bedsit in a shared house. He added: "The first week passed without incident. From November 12 to December 7 he engaged in a sustained and systematic course of controlling and coercive conduct."
Pattern of abuse and control
The court heard there were several aspects to the offending, including violence, threats and restriction on liberty. The violence included her being grabbed by the neck, having her head slammed into a wall, being bitten and repeatedly punched.
Robinson's threats included him saying she was "lucky" he didn't kill her and using a knife or knuckleduster to scare her. Mr Murphy added: "He prevented her from going out alone and was only permitted to leave in order to attend the chemist or Aldi."
Even when the victim used the bathroom at the shared premises, Robinson would pace around outside until she was finished. Mr Murphy said: "He was monitoring every aspect of her daily life."
Between November 12 and December 7, whenever he left he would lock her inside. The door could not be opened from the inside when locked. She described periods of detention lasting 45 minutes to four hours. She had no phone, knew no one in Sunderland and had no means of getting help.
Rescue and aftermath
Police went to the address at night on December 7 after receiving a voice note over Facebook Messenger of a woman screaming in the property. Robinson had instructed the woman to say she had been in a street fight if anyone asked about her injuries, which she initially told police, but she soon confessed the truth of her ordeal.
In an impact statement, the woman said she has been left with issues, including PTSD, that require medication, is plagued with nightmares and fears she will never trust enough to have another relationship again.
Estelle Chambers, defending, said Robinson has personality disorders and has sought help in prison.
