SEX OFFENDER BEGAN CONTROLLING GIRLFRIEND WITHIN 24 HOURS
A convicted sex offender began controlling his girlfriend within ’24 hours of meeting her’ and left her feeling ‘worthless’.Faith Connolly, formerly residing in Widnes, appeared via video link from HMP Berwyn in Liverpool Crown Court.
The court was told that the 35-year-old first met the victim on a bus on June 14 as she was returning home with shopping.
He offered to help carry her grocery bags, then asked for her phone number and a kiss at her doorstep.
Soon after, Connolly initiated contact through messaging, and within 24 hours, began exhibiting controlling behaviors that left her feeling weakened.
On June 18, during an intimate moment on a sofa, he started pressing his hands around her neck, causing her to feel as if she might pass out, though she was clearly distressed.
Throughout their brief romance, if she attempted to distance herself, he would slap her stubbornly on the backside, which made her feel degraded.
She was made to feel insignificant and regarded as a possession, with her personal choices questioned, such as why she closed the bathroom door.
The morning after, on June 19, they went shopping with her sister and children.
During the trip, Connolly took photographs of the children and waited outside a store for several minutes without supervision while the women went inside.
Despite having served an eight-year sentence in 2021 for groping young teenage girls and being subject to an indefinite sexual harm prevention order, Connolly was aware he was restricted from being around children but violated this order.
By June 24, she decided to end the relationship, and police arrested Connolly on June 28.
A victim impact statement was read, revealing her struggles to remember her previous life and her inability to trust people now.
In his defense, Connolly provided a statement apologising for his part in the breakup.
The judge noted that his controlling conduct was apparent from the beginning, calling the relationship short but intense.
He highlighted that Connolly had strangled the victim during a kiss, leading her to fear for her safety, and that she felt like her possession in just days.
Having three prior convictions covering seven offenses, Connolly received a two-year prison sentence and will be on the sex offenders register for life.
A restraining order was also established for ten years to protect the victim.
