Man jailed after breaching separate restraining orders against two women

A man has been jailed after admitting breaching two separate restraining orders.

Ben Hughes, aged 28 and of Rhiw Road, Colwyn Bay, was sentenced when he appeared at Gloucester Crown Court on Thursday 23 January.

He had pleaded guilty to two counts of breaching a restraining order at a previous appearance last year.

The court heard that a variation of an existing restraining order was put in place last October, prohibiting Hughes from posting anything on social media which referenced the victim.

Within 24 hours, Hughes pinned a lengthy post and photos on Facebook referring to the woman.

Hughes, who was living in Gloucestershire at the time of the offences, also admitted breaching a restraining order against another victim.

He was sentenced to 12 months in prison for the first breach and the existing restraining order was extended from three to seven years.

He was given an addition 12 weeks in jail, to run consecutively, for the breach against the second victim.

In mitigation, Hughes was given credit for early guilty pleas. The court heard that he had been suffering with his mental health at the time.

Sentencing Hughes, His Honour Judge Rupert Lowe said: "You are intelligent, you had a great job and plenty of promise. But you now have 12 convictions, mostly for violence, criminal damage, harassment and breaches of orders against women. 

"I can tell that you have a very strong sense of injustice the way you sit there shaking your head. That is your problem, thinking you are right, when you are wrong.

"You have brought this on yourself, bringing terror to these two women."

Detective Constable Tom Newrick said: "These two women have shown incredible bravery in coming forward and reporting these breaches.

"We would urge anyone who has experienced a breach of a restraining order to report them to us so that we can act.

"We take any breaches seriously and can put support in place to help protect victims."

Professional support is available for anyone who has an abusive partner, former partner or relative – contact Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service on 01452 726 570 or email: [email protected]. More information is available on their website: https://www.gdass.org.uk/

To report a domestic abuse related incident call police on the non-emergency number 101. In an emergency, or if the incident is ongoing, always call 999.

The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme gives any member of the public the right to ask the police if their partner may pose a risk to them. It is often called 'Clare's Law' after the landmark case that led to it.

This scheme also allows a member of the public to make an enquiry into the partner of a close friend or family member. For more information on this visit: https://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/daa/domestic-abuse/alpha2/request-information-under-clares-law/