Luton man jailed for coercive and controlling behaviour

A 38-year-old man from Luton has been jailed for more than three years after subjecting his partner to a campaign of coercive and controlling behaviour.

Bozlu Miah, of Stuart Street, pleaded guilty to one count of coercive and controlling behaviour and two counts of common assault, and was jailed for three years and one month following a hearing at Luton Crown Court on Wednesday, March 18.

Miah abused his partner over a number of years through his controlling behaviour, depriving her of her freedom and isolating her from a network of support.

He wouldn’t allow her to have a phone or a watch so she couldn’t tell the time and was unable to contact 999 when she needed to, controlled all of the finances, threatened her with violence, and embarrassed her in front of her friends.

PC James Bayes said: “Miah’s inexcusable behaviour had a devastating effect on the victim and I’d like to praise her for the bravery and courage she has shown in coming forward to report this abuse.

"The length of this sentence shows just how seriously coercive and controlling behaviour is taken, and I hope this will now allow the victim to begin to move on with her life.

“Domestic abuse isn’t just physical. Coercive control can be subtle to start with, it isn’t always obvious what is happening and the victim may not immediately recognise it for what it is.

"But it is abuse and it can have a serious impact on victims. It can also lead to physical violence.

“Common signs of coercive behaviour include monitoring your time and contact with others, including online communication, taking control over aspects of your life such as what you wear and who you socialise with, making threats, controlling finances, and repeatedly putting you down.

“If you think you, or someone you know, could be in an abusive and controlling relationship, we’d urge you to seek help immediately before the situation escalates even further.”

Contact Bedfordshire Police on 101, or call 999 in an emergency.