Owen Dodd, 23, from Warrington, has been jailed for 680 days after launching a brutal attack on his girlfriend during a holiday in Tenerife, an assault that only ended when a group of strangers intervened and beat him up.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how Dodd bit his girlfriend in a nightclub before repeatedly punching and kicking her as they returned to their hotel on the first night of the trip. The victim, aged 22, had told her mother beforehand that she "had a bad feeling" about the getaway, given how things had gone on a previous holiday to Mexico.
Attack began in nightclub
Tom Challinor, prosecuting, described how the relationship "soon became strained" after Dodd lost his job and "made little or no effort to get another", instead "spending most of his time playing computer games". The couple had previously gone to Mexico with his parents in February 2025, where they "drank heavily throughout that holiday", leading to "several arguments and incidents".
Dodd later borrowed money from his grandad to join family members on a "drinking holiday" to Tenerife. During their first day on the island, both had drunk alcohol and taken cocaine and ecstasy before he bit her on the cheek in a nightclub "without warning".
When the group left the premises after she was left "very upset", one of Dodd's cousins challenged him over his behaviour. He responded by smashing a bottle and threatening to stab his relatives, only agreeing to put it down when his girlfriend agreed to return to their hotel with him.
Attack ended by strangers
While walking back to their accommodation, Dodd "lost his temper again", screaming in her face and punching her two to three times, causing her to fall and hit the back of her head on the kerb. He continued to kick her in the head two to three times as she tried to get up.
His assault only ceased when another group of men intervened and began attacking him as she "begged them to stop". Back at the hotel room, he pushed her into a mirror, causing it to smash, while blaming her for the attack he had suffered, during which he had lost his mobile phone and watch.
The next morning, Dodd cried after "sobering up and seeing what he had done", buying her sunglasses to hide her black eyes. She had suffered blurred vision, bruising and scratches to her face, a split lip and a lump to the back of her head.
Victim forced to take five months off work
The victim made up a story and said she had been robbed during a FaceTime call to relatives. After their return to the UK, Dodd promised not to touch her again and said he would "get a job and seek help", but instead continued to drink and take drugs.
On April 3, his "temper exploded" during a further incident while visiting his grandparents. She drove him home, but he attempted to grab the steering wheel and crash into parked cars before punching the windscreen, cracking the glass in two places. She ordered him out and drove off, with this being their "last face to face contact".
Dodd continued to contact her via phone and social media, telling her she "might as well contact the police, otherwise he'd stalk her and never leave her alone". She reported his actions after being encouraged to do so by both his and her parents. She was forced to take five months off work after being diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.
Sentencing, Recorder Tania Griffiths KC said: "I have formed the very definite view that you are a controlling bully. Sometimes, the only language that a bully understands is one which has an immediate impact. The only sentence, in my judgement, that does that is one of immediate custody. I hope that gives you the wake up call that your family can't."
