Kieran Mountford (Image: Stoke Sentinel / Reach PLC)
Kieran Mountford unleashed attacks on two girlfriends and shockingly threw a puppy against a wall in a string of deplorable acts.
He chillingly warned the child of one of his victims: “You’re not going to have a mum when you come home.”
The court was told how the 22 year old subjected two women to verbal and physical abuse over several years, with one relationship beginning in their childhood.
His reign of terror included lobbing a three-month-old pup to intimidate one of his petrified partners, as well as throttling her and routinely beating them, reports Birmingham Live.
One of the women was hospitalised after he attacked her for forgetting her PayPal password when he wanted to buy himself something online.
The incident left her with two black eyes and a temporary visual impairment, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard.
Mountford was branded a ‘nasty boy’ by the judge who handed down a sentence of three years and 10 months.
Prosecutor Suzanne Francis detailed to the court that the abuse towards his first young girlfriend spanned from 2019 to 2021, while he tormented his second victim from March 2021 until 2023.
Mountford had the audacity to attribute his atrocious conduct to his ADHD, according to StokeonTrentLive.
The prosecutor told the court: “He started a relationship with an individual when she was aged 15 and he was 16 and he would get angry and shout at her. He moved in with her in 2020 and gave her black eye in the first week.
“In May 2020 he threw ‘shake and vac’ in her face and it went into her eyes and caused her to cough. He pushed his thumbs into her eyes and gave her black eyes.
“He would check her phone without permission. In November 2020 she woke to him strangling her, and on numerous occasions when she was in the bath he would hold her head under water.
“He began punching her on an almost daily basis. He received a call from a girl she worked with and he grabbed the phone, threw it at the back of her head and it split and had to be glued in AandE.
“In January 2021 the pair began a relationship again and he threw her across the room and hit her in front of her little brothers.
“He once attacked her in their room and they said ‘Kieran, stop you’re hurting her’. On one occasion the complainant got a bottle of Malibu out of the cupboard saying she was going out with her friends.
“He took the bottle from her and tried to hit her over the head with it but his friend stopped him.”
Ms Francis also added how Mountford said he would have hit the victim’s mum if she had been a male, and smashed a TV.
Talking about the second victim, Ms Francis said: “The defendant would throw her puppy against the wall and she was too scared he’d do it to her to stop him.
“They were once joking around when he suddenly strangled her and said ‘You always push me to that extent you made me do that again’.
“In March 2022 the defendant attacked her on her bed, he punched her in the back and in the ribs and she fell to the ground after he accused her of cheating.
“The next day he laughed and said ‘At least it wasn’t in the face that time’.
“He told her she was not allowed to wear makeup and if she did he’d assault her.
He threatened her on the school run in front of her daughter and said: ‘You’re not going to have a mum when you come home.'”
Mountford, from Lyme Road, Meir, admitted to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, intentional strangulation, and two counts of coercive and controlling behaviour towards two separate victims – all whilst on a suspended sentence.
Matthew Ness, mitigating, said: “Mr Mountford is a young person diagnosed with ADHD. He had a disruptive education, he was excluded and taken out of school aged seven, and he fell into negative peer influences.
“His mother was no longer able to keep him safe as he was regularly absconding and he was taken into care at age 13. I dwell on his lack of maturity.
“He acknowledges he has issues with anger. In both instances, domestic violence took place during the lockdown period.
“He is a young man who is neurodivergent with mental health issues and substance abuse issues. He’s keen to engage in anger management services.”
Jailing the defendant, Judge Robert Smith told him: “Your behaviour was controlling and coercive and deeply unpleasant [to his first victim], what started out as relatively pleasant but there were occasions where you began to shout at her, and within three months that turned violent.
“You would hit her, call her a ‘slag’ all whilst living with her parents. The bruises – which were under clothing – were not visible to her parents but you began to give her black eyes and you threw a chemical substance in her eyes and deliberately pushed it in.
“You punched her in the ribs, threw her off the bed and checked her phone regularly – a sinister act of controlling behaviour.
“You held her in the bath on a number of occasions, you degraded her and lowered her self worth. You punched her in the ribs on an almost daily basis.
“In December 2020 you punched her to the side of her face so hard she lost consciousness, all because she couldn’t remember her PayPal password to allow you to buy something online.
“She was left with a black eye, double vision and visuals in her eye.
“You threw her phone at her and caused her head to have to be glued. You punched her, kicked her, and smashed her head into a wall – those children [the victim’s brothers] were terrified and begged you to stop.
“At the end of the relationship you kicked her into a radiator and grabbed a bottle of spirits and you were about to hit her over the head with it. Thankfully a friend was there to stop you.
“When interviewed by police in 2021 you lied through your teeth about the violence towards [the first victim]. I’ve seen the photos of her injuries – she was a child when the relationship started, she suffers from flashbacks, she had therapy for months, and she had been treated for depression and anxiety, and your behaviour had a very significant impact on her.
“In March 2021 to August 22, [the second victim] made complaints to the police on more than one occasion. This victim was under the spell of her abuser.
“You abused that poor puppy by throwing it against a wall – an utterly disgusting behaviour which cannot be blamed on immaturity. That puppy was a totally defenceless animal.
“You are prepared to cross any line to break any social or moral norm. On your 19th birthday you strangled her and said ‘You always have to punish me to that extent’. That is victim blaming.
“In January 2023 you punched her in the face for having the courage to invite a friend to your home for a social activity because she didn’t ask first. When confronted, you hit her and said ‘At least I didn’t hit you in the face again, I said I wouldn’t’. Your behaviour has seriously eroded that poor girl’s sense of self confidence and self worth.
“You lost your temper when dropping her child off at school, in a chilling exchange, you told that child ‘You’re not going to have a mum when you come home’. That is a despicable and shameless thing to say to an innocent child. In August 2022, this victim finally plucked up the courage to end your relationship.
“In October 2022 you threatened to stab [this victim] when trying to arrange to collect her belongings. You went outside her address to harass her. She says the abuse she suffered by you left her with crippling anxiety, and she was too scared in her own home.
“Her daughter who saw you hit her mother has been affected by what you did. Your behaviour has a very significant impact on her, her intimate relationships, and her child.
“[The first victim] was still a child when you domestically abused her – domestic offences are especially serious.
“Although you have certain difficulties, ADHD, and you haven’t had the best start in life, these offences are so serious only an immediate prison sentence can justify your offending.
“Your behaviour towards these victims is truly appalling – you made their lives a daily misery. You have no conscious or insight into your offending behaviour, and your victim blaming shows you need to develop insight towards how to treat women in the future.
“You have the potential to be a nasty boy. You are young, so you could change if you want to. I’d be failing in my public duty if I didn’t send you to prison for your sickening behaviour towards two young women.”
