A court heard how thug Kristofer Mawhinney punched the woman repeatedly before telling her to wear some make-up, saying to her after: ‘I can’t even look at you.’
A violent brute who told his victim to wear make-up so he didn’t have to see the damage he had done to her face has been jailed. Domestic violence thug Kristofer Mawhinney admitted strangling and attacking the woman, who was in a relationship with him for around three years until it came to an end last summer due to his abusive and controlling behaviour.
The woman described how things had been fine to begin with and he “love-bombed” her, but after around six months she said he started being excessively jealous and threatening towards. The 32-year-old, of Crofthead Close, Blyth, Northumberland, would repeatedly call and text her, ask where she was, who she was with and what she was doing, the ChronicleLive reports.
“Things got worse,” Daisy Wrigley, prosecuting, told Newcastle Crown Court. “He consistently accused her of cheating on him and she stopped going out rather than dealing with his inevitable behaviour.”
The court heard how in March last year, they went into Newcastle to watch a boxing match and ended up going back to a hotel, where he pushed her onto a bed and had hold of her by the throat with one hand. He put his other hand across her mouth and the terrified woman had to push him off her.
In April, she broke up with him but he couldn’t accept she no longer wanted to be in a relationship with him. After receiving multiple calls and texts, she blocked him only for him to repeatedly call her from a withheld number.
On one occasion, she was horrified to wake to find him standing at the end of her bed. He had got into her home while she slept after getting a key from a neighbour, who didn’t realise he was no longer in a relationship with the woman.
In June, the victim decided to give him another chance. The following month, she went out drinking with her mother and went to Mawhinney’s home afterwards. Miss Wrigley told the court he was fine at first but then lost his temper.
The thug punched her multiple times. The prosecutor told the court: “She had bruising around both eyes from the impact to her head. She believed he was going to kill her because he wouldn’t stop.”
She described how the morning after the assault the woman noticed some of her hair, yanked out during the attack, lying on the floor. Mawhinney was apologetic and encouraged her to stay at his home so her family didn’t see her injuries. He also gave her suggestions about lies she could tell her family about how she came about her injuries.
Mawhinney then asked his victim to wear make-up when she saw him so he didn’t have to see the consequences of his violence. In one message, he wrote: “Please put some make-up on when you come back. I honestly can’t even look at you properly. This shouldn’t have happened, I’m devastated I did it.”
She attended hospital, where Mawhinney turned up, and his first concern was to find out what she had told hospital staff. She had not told them the truth about what had occurred at that stage.
The following day, she reported him to the police. Even as officers took her statement, he continued to bombard her with calls. The next day, he tried to call her 64 times and texted her when she ignored him.
In a victim impact statement she read in court, the woman said she previously “saw the good in everyone”. She said what happened to her led to her being traumatised after living for years in “flight or fight mode”.
She added: “Therapy has helped me with a lot of the guilt and shame I felt. I know what happened to me and what he did to me was not my fault.
“What happened to me was not right and I didn’t deserve any of it.” The woman said she thinks she will never love again due to what he did to her, adding that Mawhinney was “callous”. She said: “What I’ve learned is they never change. This is not love. Leave and never look back.”
The 32-year-old, who has 37 previous convictions, pleaded guilty to controlling behaviour, intentional strangulation and assault. Jailing him for 40 months and imposing a nine-year restraining order, Recorder Jonathan Sandiford said: “They were particularly serious and nasty pieces of domestic violence.”
Joe Culley, defending, said Mawhinney had become addicted to crack cocaine at the time. He described himself as a “horrible person” for having treated the victim so badly.
For confidential support, call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or visit womensaid.co.uk. If you or your family have lost a friend or family member through fatal domestic abuse, AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) can offer specialist and expert support and advocacy. For more info visit www.aafda.org.uk.
