Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
‘No sentence can undo the harm he did to us’
THE victim of a “vile, disgusting brute” today said he should have been locked up for life after she and her children suffered years of beatings.
James Skelly, 32, of Hawick Drive, was jailed for four years at the city’s sheriff court, with a further one year under supervision in the community upon his release.
He had previously pleaded guilty to five charges of assault and one of behaving in a threatening and abusive manner at addresses in Dundee and Fife over the course of five years.
A leading police chief said he caused those he targeted to “live in fear”.
Now one of his victims has come forward to speak of the “complete nightmare” she and her children were put through.
The 32-year-old woman — who cannot be named for legal reasons — said she was glad he had been jailed, but added: “Although some justice has been seen to be served his sentence is not nearly long enough.
“He’s a vile, disgusting brute who deserves to be locked up for the rest of his life. That man ruined my life and no sentence can undo the harm he did to me and my family.
“What he did to us will haunt me for the rest of my life. I want people to know what kind of person he is. He should never be allowed to be near women and children for the rest of his life. He made my life hell and a complete nightmare — I lived in constant fear. I was subjected to daily physical and mental abuse by him but didn’t know how to get away.
“He watched over me constantly and it was almost impossible for me to get help. I bitterly regret knowing him and know now that he took complete advantage of me.”
The woman said she only finally got help after she locked herself in the bathroom and texted her mum.
She added: “Somehow now, I have to try to move forward with my life. I’m trying to rebuild my life. I’m going to try desperately hard not to let what he did to us ruin the rest of our lives.”
Skelly admitted attacking another ex, choking her until she was light headed and ran from her flat in the middle of the night for help.
Detective Inspector Muriel Fuller, of Police Scotland’s Domestic Abuse Task Force, said: “James Skelly assaulted the women involved in this case causing them to live in fear of constant violence from him.
“The Domestic Abuse Task Force carried out a protracted investigation into this case and I hope this conviction and sentence sends out a clear message that Police Scotland will robustly and sensitively investigate domestic abuse and that those who perpetrate it have nowhere to hide.”