Jail for obsessive Ashfield man who beat, bit and strangled girlfriend

Ricky Wollington became "obsessive about her cheating on him" after they moved in together in May last year, said Annabelle Lenton, prosecuting.The following month he pinned her to the bed and squeezed her throat so hard he restricted her breathing, before biting her cheek and nose to leave bruises that lasted weeks.Wollington, aged 26, was high on alcohol and drugs when he punched her in the back "with such force it made her collapse", on September 19.He dragged her around the floor by her hair, wrenching out a handful, and whipped her with her coat causing scratches.When she tried to leave Wollington shoved her onto the sofa and hit her with an open hand, leaving her with swollen eyes and lips, cuts and bruises."He returned home and, unable to control his temper he grabbed her by the throat in such a tight grip she nearly lost consciousness," said Ms Lenton of a third attack on October 2."Rather than show any sign of sympathy he told her to shut up because he was so worried the neighbours might hear," she said.

Wollington grabbed her around the throat and slapped her so hard her vision became cloudy.In a statement, his victim said she has suffered sleeplessness and flashbacks to the strangulation as well as low moods and anxiety."He made my life hell and I don't want him part of my life anymore," she said.Wollington initially told police her black eye was caused when he defended himself against her.Nottingham Crown Court heard he has ten previous convictions for 15 offences, including sexual communication with a child in June 2018.Laura Hocknell, mitigating, said he has a "complex" psychiatric background with a history of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anti-social personality disorder and autism."The public and his future partners might be better served with intensive rehabilitation instead of a prison sentence," she said.Wollington, of Pearl Avenue, Kirkby, admitted intentional strangulation and inflicting actual bodily harm, on the day of his trial.On Wednesday, Judge John Sampson told him he left his victim "humiliated and traumatised."