46-year-old who punched and bit his partner at her Cambridge home is jailed

A man who flew into a rage at his partner, biting and punching her, has been jailed.

Gavin Bainbridge, 46, was homeless but staying at the victim’s home in Cambridge at the time.

He attacked her on October 30 as she went to leave the house, grabbing her face and throwing her onto a bed, before punching her in the head several times.

He covered her mouth so she could not breathe and bit her hand so hard she screamed out in pain.

Bainbridge threatened the victim, telling her: “If police come, you are not making it out of this building alive.”

After the assault he claimed he hated himself.

The terrified victim did not contact police, but when she visited Cambridge jobcentre, staff saw she had a black eye and bruising and called the police.

Officers visited the victim at home. Although she told them Bainbridge was not there, they found him sleeping upstairs.

Eventually, the victim shared with police the videos she had made of her injuries, including bite marks to her hand and leg and bruising to her face and arms.

Bainbridge denied causing actual bodily harm and intentional strangulation but changed his pleas to guilty at Peterborough Crown Court on Monday (16 June). A charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm was ordered to lie on file.

He was jailed for 16 months for causing actual bodily harm and 12 months for intentional strangulation, to run concurrently, and given a ten-year restraining order.

Det Con Charlotte Anderson-Chapman said: “Thanks to the quick-thinking of the jobcentre staff, we were able to arrest Bainbridge and bring him to justice while freeing his partner from more abuse.

“I hope she can now get her life back on track because no-one should have to tolerate abuse and violence in their life.”

Anyone experiencing domestic abuse can report it at https://www.cambs.police.uk/ro/report/domestic-abuse/a1/report-domestic-abuse/.