Shotton man jailed after burglary and attack on partner

A Shotton man who took part in a masked gang break-in before savagely beating his partner months later has been sentenced to more than three and a half years in prison.

Kyle Robinson, 36, of Aston Road, appeared at Mold Crown Court on Wednesday after admitting burglary and inflicting grievous bodily harm without intent. Judge Eugene Egan handed him a total of 43 months behind bars.

The attack

While Robinson was on bail for the burglary, North Wales Police were contacted by the Welsh Ambulance Service at 2.54am on February 8 this year following reports of an assault at the St David’s Park Hotel in Ewloe.

A hotel employee discovered Robinson’s partner “crying hysterically”. The couple had argued about their relationship after she had gone to visit him at the hotel, where he was living at the time. Robinson had been drinking whisky.

Karl Scholz, prosecuting, said the victim had attempted to leave but was unable to reach a friend by phone, so asked to stay. The arguments continued, and Robinson dragged her before punching her with such violence that he fractured her left eye socket and nose. She was knocked unconscious, the left side of her face was left badly swollen, and a tooth was missing. Her body was also covered in bruises.

She later required surgery, with a small metal plate inserted into her left eye socket to repair the fracture. The court heard the victim had previously noted Robinson had worked as a bouncer.

The victim’s account

In a personal statement, the woman described living with nerve damage and double vision since the assault. She suffered nightmares and “night terrors” and had developed symptoms of PTSD.

She had been prescribed medication for anxiety and depression alongside painkillers, and was forced to take time off work, leaving her finances under strain.

“I feel as though he has ruined my life,” she told the court.

The burglary

Robinson’s offending began on September 1 last year, when the occupant of a property on Old Chester Road, Ewloe, was woken at approximately 2.45am by the sound of banging and smashing from the floor below.

“Fearing for his life”, the man opened his bedroom window and began shouting to attract attention. He could see a group of men dressed in black and wearing balaclavas running from the scene, some of whom he believed were carrying axes and baseball bats. He also called the police.

Mr Scholz told the court the victim went downstairs to find the kitchen and back room “totally ransacked”, with blood on the window and patio outside. The garage had also been broken into and its windows smashed.

CCTV footage captured five males approaching the address, at least one carrying a pole. Blood recovered from a TV unit inside the property was later matched to Robinson through DNA analysis, and he was arrested.

Robinson initially claimed he was a friend of the homeowner and had previously visited the property, which he suggested could explain the blood. The victim told police he did not know Robinson. Robinson later admitted he had been carrying a hockey stick during the break-in, the court heard.

Mr Scholz said the victim was not aware anything had been taken, though he had previously kept valuable motorbikes at the address and removed them over security concerns. In a personal statement, the homeowner said he was now “scared to live in the house” and was looking to move, adding that he was frightened to think what might have happened had he encountered the masked group.

Mitigation

Ryan Rothwell, defending, said Robinson had endured a difficult childhood in which he experienced domestic abuse. At the time of the offences, he had been dealing with a bereavement, a relationship breakdown and homelessness, alongside problems with alcohol and drug misuse.

Mr Rothwell highlighted that his client had entered guilty pleas and had only one previous conviction – for possession of cannabis and obstructing a police officer in 2007.

Sentencing

Judge Egan said the burglary had left its victim no longer wanting to live in his own home. He branded the subsequent attack on Robinson’s former partner, committed while on bail, as “utterly disgraceful” and “unfathomable”.

Robinson had assaulted her “in an extremely violent and wholly unnecessary way”, causing “serious injuries”, the judge said. He called it a “ferocious attack” on a “terrified woman”.

“Decent men do not treat their female partners the way you treated her,” Judge Egan told Robinson.

Robinson was sentenced to 43 months in prison, to serve the appropriate period in custody with the remainder on licence. He was also made subject to a 10-year Domestic Abuse Prevention Order, prohibiting any approach or contact with his former partner.