South Yorkshire man's conviction for control and abuse of partner '˜could be first of many'

Sheffield man Mohammed Anwaar was jailed for 28 months for a prolonged series of attacks and restrictive, abusive behaviour towards his former partner Gemma Doherty.

Nine of the 10 counts he admitted at Sheffield Crown Court were related to specific violent incidents. But the 10th was a new charge of controlling or coercive behaviour, only brought in at the end of the year. For that alone Anwaar, from Charlotte Road, received a 12-month prison sentence in court today (Wednesday, May 18).

The 27-year-old told Miss Doherty who she could see, what she was allowed to wear and what not to eat. He forced her to use a treadmill every day, showing her pictures of other women’s bodies and telling her she did not look as good as they did.

The new law, which carries a maximum prison sentence of five years, was brought in to include such behaviours, which do not amount to violence but still cause someone to fear violence will be used against them, or generate serious alarm or distress that has a substantial effect on their usual day-to-day activities.

Abuse can include a pattern of threats, humiliation and intimidation, or behaviour such as stopping a partner socialising, controlling their social media accounts, surveillance through apps or dictating what they wear.

In a victim statement read out to the court yesterday, Miss Doherty said the relationship had started out ‘perfect’ but everything changed in May 2015.

“I knew how quickly his mood could change over the smallest thing,” she said.