'My friends warned me' - Victim tells Preston Crown Court of hell with coercive & controlling ex

But, after breaking up with a previous boyfriend, the woman ignored their warnings and went into a six-month relationship which turned into a nightmare, a court was told.

Brandon Robinson was jailed by a judge for putting his victim through an ordeal which left her with suicidal thoughts and seeking treatment for mental health issues.

Preston Crown Court heard 30-year-old Robinson made her feel isolated, prevented her from seeing her family, belittled her in public and was aggressive towards her on multiple occasions.

He twice dumped her in the countryside - once in North Yorkshire and again near Garstang - and drove off, leaving her to find her own way home.

In a victim impact statement read in court she said: “I feel he prayed on me because I was vulnerable. My friends warned me about him, but I didn’t listen.”

Robinson pleaded guilty to coercive and controlling behaviour, assault and criminal damage. He was also sentenced after admitting a random attack on a man in the street which left him with a fractured cheekbone requiring surgery and a one-week stay in hospital.

Judge Heather Lloyd was told his female victim claimed she had suffered six months of hell at the hands of Robinson.

The two got together initially as friends and, despite warnings from her friends, their relationship blossomed into romance.

She said she had just gone through a bad patch with a previous boyfriend and, at first, things were good.

The prosecution said matters rapidly “went downhill” with Robinson constantly out with his mates and borrowing money off her which he didn’t repay.

One day, while staying at a hotel near Catterick, they had an argument in her car and he drove off leaving her stranded. It happened again on a trip to Garstang. On both occasions Robinson, she claimed, had no driving licence.

He would make her feel uncomfortable when they were out with friends and he would coerce her into giving him cash which he spent on gambling. She said he made her feel she had to beg for forgiveness even though she had done nothing wrong.

She said his controlling behaviour affected her mentally, heightening her anxiety. After they had separated she was reluctant to go out and was afraid she would see him in the street.

“I am worried he will come back onto the estate,” she said. “I have bought cameras for the house and spoken to doctors about my mental health. I had suicidal thoughts with the way he made me feel.”

Police were called when he smashed her front door while calling round one day to collect his things, leaving her upset and crying. He had grabbed her by the hair and dragged her round the bed.

Robinson also pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm on a man in the street. The court was told his victim in this case was a man riding a bike in Clayton-le-Moors. Robinson started shouting at him and acting aggressively, telling him to “get off the estate”.

The man got off his bike and Robinson threw a punch which he managed to dodge. Then Robinson picked up a chair from a nearby garden and threw it at him, hitting him in the face.

The victim felt the impact and pain and, after he turned to ask “what’s your game”, Robinson threw the chair again.

Despite his injuries the man turned back at him and said: “Come on then, got no weapons now.”

The victim suffered from banging headaches and his jaw was painful. He was examined in hospital and found to have a fractured cheekbone which required an operation under general anaesthetic.

Barrister Ellie Watson, defending, said her client had been “mortified” when he learned the extent of the man’s injuries.

He also realised the impact his behaviour had had on his former girlfriend. He wished he could take back his actions.

She explained that Robinson, of Within Grove, Accrington, suffered from depression and paranoia and was now medicated for the conditions. “It does go some way to explaining his behaviour,” she said.

Judge Lloyd said Robinson had continually lied about his involvement in any of the incidents and that the allegations by his ex-partner had been fabricated. He said he wasn’t present when the man was assaulted and then added it was self-defence.

She told him: “If you are a liar you have to be consistent in your lies. You said you were defending yourself against him, where in fact it was a gratuitous attack (by you). And after reading character references she added: “Anything said on your behalf has to be independently treated with scepticism.”

She said he had “preyed on” his ex-partner and affected her mental health. She worried about what would happen when he was released.

The judge imposed a restraining order banning him from making any contact with her for the next five years.

She said he had exercised coercive control over her for a prolonged period using multiple measures.

Judge Lloyd said that his offending had been so serious that only an immediate custodial sentence was appropriate.

She jailed him for 12 months for coercive and controlling behaviour and 11 months for the GBH on the male victim, to run consecutively, making a total of 23 months in prison. She also imposed one month sentences for assaulting the female victim and criminal damage to run concurrently.

But because he had already been in custody for around nine months waiting for the case to be heard in court - the equivalent of an 18-months jail sentence - he would probably be freed soon.