A GAMBLING addict who threatened to stab a mum and send sexual images of her to family and colleagues has been jailed for 40 months. 

Jason Paul, 35, of Hunters Way, Slough, appeared via video link at Liverpool Crown Court after pleading guilty to a number of offences, including strangulation, assault, false imprisonment and threatening to send a private sexual photograph.

The court heard how Paul “relentlessly” stalked, threatened, strangled, and attacked a woman from Liscard in the Wirral causing her to live in a “state of fear and anxiety”.

In November 2022 Paul threatened to send a sexual image of her to her friends and colleagues.

Prosecuting, Matthew Conway, said Paul sent a draft email to her which was addressed to her work colleagues and family members including an intimate image she had sent. The email stated ‘You ready? Sit tight just attaching all of the images’.

He also sent her a countdown to when he would send the images.

The victim said she was forced to answer his phone calls out of fear of the threat and to stop him from sending the email.

The court also heard how in January 2023, Paul grabbed the victim by her cheeks and pushed her against a wall before dragging her into a room and trapping her by pushing a bed against the door.

Mr Conway said: “He told her to stop playing the victim and that she was not going anywhere.”

In June 2023, during a trip to Liverpool, Paul got “annoyed” at the victim and said she was “attracting attention from other men” after a group asked the victim for directions.

While at her home, Paul barricaded the victim in a room and jumped on top of her.

Mr Conway said: “He put both his hands around her throat, with his thumbs on either side of her windpipe leaving red marks. She struggled to breathe and he told her he was ‘going to end it’.”

On another occasion, the victim received a phone call from the defendant threatening to “stab her” and to “drive his car into her house and kill her sons”. The court also heard how Paul sent the victim “constant” messages and phone calls from unknown numbers and would turn up at her house with “boxes of flowers”.

Paul also followed the victim in his car while she was driving to work.

In September 2023, Paul was arrested and questioned by police. In a statement he said he “accepted” he sent threatening messages but did “not intend to threaten”. He also claimed the victim was “controlling” and that they would “strangle each other”.

The victim sobbed as she read out her impact statement in court stating that she “lived in a state of fear” in what he might do to her.

She said that her mental health has been affected and she has constant anxiety and now struggles to sleep.

She said: “I think there is a camera in my bedroom. When I do sleep, I have nightmares that he is standing over me.”

The victim also said she has been suffering from a skin condition and alopecia since reporting the abuse.

She said: “I find myself in a place I thought I’d never be in. My social life has been affected too. I do not go out with friends or family or go to the gym anymore.

“When I drive, I am on constant high alert it has made me a nervous driver after the incident with him following me.”

Mr Andrew McInnes, defending, said Paul “accepts his behaviour as disgraceful”.

Addressing the court, he said: “He accepts he has been violent and the affects on [the victim] are his responsibility. He apologies to her and understands his behaviour has been unacceptable.

“He has issues with relationships and addiction. He can find good employment and is intelligent and can be personable but there is another side to him.

“His remorse seems genuine in what he expresses. He knows he needs to change.”

Sentencing, Recorder Matthew Happold, described Paul’s actions as “incredibly dangerous” and “life-threatening”.

He said: “What it tells me is that your offending over the course of the year was not only seriously distressing but has caused major effect to her family, personal life, her jobs, volunteering and business and continues to do so. She is anxious and remains fearful.

“The best thing you can do is accept responsibility for what you have done. You abused her trust and exploited her when she made herself vulnerable to you.”

Paul was sentenced to 40 months in prison. He was also issued with a restraining order and ordered to pay a victim surcharge.