Man forced to spend £40k on abusive girlfriend had arms clawed until he bled as she demanded ‘expensive’ gift at Harrods

31 May 2024, 12:02 | Updated: 31 May 2024, 12:06

A man who was taunted for months by his abusive girlfriend has revealed she forced him to take her to Harrods and ‘clawed’ his arms as she said ‘we’re not leaving until you buy me something expensive’.

Gareth Jones, 40, was subjected to a nine-month regime of terror by his girlfriend Sarah Rigby, 41, who taunted him over his weight, hair and breath.

Rigby made Mr Jones eat salad, wear a hat and swallow toothpaste as she told him he was fat, bald and had bad breath.

She also stopped him from using the shower or toilet and made him sleep on the floor as a form of punishment.

After Rigby attended court with a £400 Marc Jacobs bag she had Mr Jones buy her on a trip to Harrods, he revealed that she had dug her nails into his arm so tightly that he bled as she told him to buy her something expensive.

He told ITV News: “We were on a weekend away in London, and basically I was told to go into Harrods, and I... had my arm grabbed, and clawed so deep that I actually started bleeding underneath my sweater.

“I was told: ‘We are not leaving this shop until you buy me something expensive.’

Mr Jones estimates he spent about £30-40,000 on gifts for Rigby in total.

He continued: “I thought probably that if I'd stayed in [the relationship] any longer, that things would have ended up a lot worse for me.”

Asked why he stayed in the relationship, he said it “does become the normal for you”.

Mr Jones and Rigby met on the dating site Plenty of Fish, where she began to ‘love bomb’ him - bombarding a person with demonstrations of affection and attention.

Later, Mr Jones moved into her house, which Rigby made him pay £700 rent for despite her father owning the property.

After moving in, he was never given a key to the house and was made to keep his belongings in the garage and was regularly kicked out, leaving him no choice but to stay with his parents.

But whenever he stayed with his parents he was too afraid to eat in case she smelt food on his breath when he returned.

Mr Jones lost four stone throughout their relationship before he eventually contacted police in March 2022 after getting in touch with a men's domestic abuse helpline.

Rigby also regularly attacked Mr Jones - kicking, biting, scratching and clawing him.

In one instance, she threw a glass candle holder at his face which left him with a scar on his nose.

Mr Jones said the relationship left him feeling “nervous, degraded and worthless”.

He previously said of the relationship: “Whilst I was with Sarah, my relationship with friends and family became strained. I was isolated from everyone.

“I was extremely nervous about ringing my parents as my phone would constantly be checked so I would delete all evidence of this and had to create a code word with my mum, so that she knew Sarah was not around and could speak more freely.”

Rigby also fabricated claims that Mr Jones attacked her and demanded compensation from him with the threat of police action.

She falsely claimed in an interview that Mr Jones had been violent, coercive, controlling and manipulative towards her.

When asked by police to return Mr Jones’s possessions, such as his work computer, she denied she had anything to return.

Judge Recorder Eric Lamb told Rigby: “Your conduct has led to a substantial detrimental effect upon Mr Jones, who even today when speaking of the impact of the relationship upon him was plainly close to tears and in great distress when speaking on where the relationship had left him.”

Last week, Rigby was given a 20-month suspended jail sentence a 35-day rehab order and a five-year restraining order preventing her from contacting Mr Jones or his parents.

Mr Jones said that he believes Rigby received a more lenient sentence because she is a woman, as he said: “I feel that if it was a man, then it probably would be a completely different outcome.”

After sentencing, Cheshire Constabulary's DC Sophie Ward said: “This is the worst case of controlling and coercive behaviour I have ever seen.

“Many people think that only women can be victims of controlling and coercive behaviour, but as this case demonstrates, that is not always the case and there is help available.”