GREENOCK BRUTE WHO ABDUCTED HIS EX JAILED FOR HORRIFIC ATTACKS ON TWO WOMEN
A VIOLENT thug who subjected two exes to a horrific and sustained campaign of abuse has been jailed for nearly three years.A judge branded brute Michael Ryan ‘a danger to the public’ and said prison was the only appropriate punishment for his shocking violence.
Greenock Sheriff Court was told that Ryan had tried to ‘shame’ his victims in an interview with social workers – and that he had shown ‘a complete lack of remorse’ for his conduct.
Ryan dragged one former partner into a Greenock flat and detained her there before carrying out a brutal assault.
The 34-year-old was sentenced at the town’s sheriff court yesterday after pleading guilty to a series of charges last month.
Ryan’s despicable behaviour dated back to June 2021, when he repeatedly punched a woman with both fists to the head, body and legs.
After stealing a car from John Campbell Court in Gourock in July 2022, Ryan likened the theft to the ‘Grand Theft Auto’ computer game.
Then, in January 2023, Ryan abducted his second victim in the town’s Regent Street, grabbed her by the ankles, detained her in a nearby flat and threatened to kill her.
Yesterday’s hearing was told that Ryan had attacked his first victim after she attended the funeral of one of his close friends, against Ryan’s wishes.
The woman was able to call police, who arrested Ryan later that day.
The court was told a woman had returned to her home to find her door had been forced open, a set of car keys removed, and the vehicle to which they belonged had been stolen.
The court heard that on July 22, Ryan messaged the woman on Snapchat saying ‘I put your door in’ – and that five days later, in another Snapchat message, he had likened the theft of the car to a scenario from Grand Theft Auto.
In January of the following year, police heard Ryan acting aggressively in the background while a woman called police but did not speak, and he then grabbed her by the throat, put her in a headlock, and dragged her along the floor.
He demanded she stay quiet, locked her in a bedroom, turned off the lights, and threatened to kill her if she made a sound.
Ryan hid under the bed, but police found and arrested him after arriving at the scene.
Sentencing was deferred last month to allow for a background report.
The court was told Ryan had been in custody at different times since January and had started a new, more stable relationship, stating he did not plan to return to Greenock.
The judge said Ryan's behaviour dated back to June 2021, with repeated punches to a woman’s head, body, and legs.
He had stolen a car in July 2022 and linked the theft to a video game.
Ryan also abducted and threatened his second victim in January 2023.
The sheriff branded Ryan ‘a danger to the public’ and noted his serious abusive behaviour.
Ryan was sentenced to 33 months in jail, backdated to February 14, with a 12-month supervised release order, and was barred from contacting his victims for five years and from holding or obtaining a driving licence for 55 months.
