Thug is jailed after trying to strangle his ex
A‘‘COWARDLY’’ thug strangled his ex-girlfriend, tried to bite her nose and rammed his thumbs in her eyes in a sickening attack.
Billy Cowley, from Quinton, also launched a violent assault on another former partner and was described as a ‘‘menace to women’’ by a judge.
The 23-year-old from Birmingham has now been jailed for a further 21 months for domestic abuse offences, having already been sent to prison last year for burglary and aggravated vehicle taking in Worcestershire.
On the morning of May 2 last year Cowley barged his way into the home of an ex-partner, Birmingham Crown Court heard.
He became verbally abusive and started swearing at her as well as her female friend who was also there.
Cowley grabbed his ex-girlfriend by the throat, not releasing his grip for around 30 seconds.
He then tried to bite her nose but fortunately she backed her face away. However, Cowley then stuck his thumbs in her eyes.
She fled to a neighbour’s home but Cowley pursued her, punched his former partner on the head and warned ‘‘you’re f ***** if you call the police’,’ said prosecutor Alison Scott-Jones. When he finally left he scraped the car of her friend.
Then on May 18 he turned up uninvited at the home of another ex-girlfriend. He forced his way in and began shouting at her and said: “I’m going to kill you and make your life hell.”
He then pushed her into a downstairs bathroom and reached for her neck.
“He kept squeezing her throat until she was struggling to breathe,” said Ms Scott-Jones.
The two ex-partners spoke to each other about the violence they had both endured at the hands of Cowley.
On May 19 he rang one of them and threatened to come and smash her windows before videoing himself in a car saying “I’m going to come and get you and blast you in the face”.
Later on in the month he called her again and she told him they should both move on. But Cowley then erupted into another tirade of abuse and threatened to cut her toes off.
Judge Richard Bond stated the woman had been left ‘‘utterly terrified’’ and told Cowley: “You really do not understand how to conduct relationships with women.
“Your antecedent history and this case demonstrates you really are a menace to women. You think nothing of going around using violence upon them.”
Cowley, of Little Hill Way, Quinton, admitted two charges of common assault, one of criminal damage and another of putting someone in fear of violence by harassment.
He was sentenced to 21 months, to be served consecutively with a term of three years and six months he received last year for unrelated offences – a burglary in Evesham and aggravated vehicle taking on the M42.
In total he has 14 previous convictions for 27 offences.
Harinderpal Dhami, defending, stated Cowley showed a ‘‘lack of maturity’’.