A former solider who ambushed his terrified partner in her own home before brutally attacking her said he had 'killed seven people' and that 'one more won't be hard for me' a court heard.
Ben Cotton, 41, was labelled a 'coward' and 'not even a man' by his victim as he was jailed by a judge who said that she 'genuinely believed, for good reason, that he would kill her.'
The woman, his then-girlfriend was "trapped in an evil game of cat and mouse with a monster" with Cotton at the time of attack, in the early hours of in the early hours of February 16 reports Lancs Live.
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Ex-serviceman Cotton had over the course of the previous evening sent threatening messages to the mum-of-one, saying he would "hurt everyone she loved" Preston Crown Court was told.
The woman went to bed at 1am but Cotton continued to message. At 3am, she woke to banging at her front door and went to check on what was happening.
Cotton barged past her, shouting and swearing. As the woman told him to leave, he grabbed her clothing and dragged her into the living room.
He punched the wall so hard the plaster was damaged and his hand started to bleed, the court heard. He then went to the kitchen and the woman went to the front door to try to escape.
But as she held the door handle, Cotton approached her from behind, put both hands around her throat and squeezed so hard she passed out.
As she fell to the floor, she landed on a plug in air freshener which broke and grazed her back, leaving a scar. "I feared for my life and I was trapped", she said.
When the woman came round, Cotton said he was leaving. The woman ran into the hallway of the apartment block and banged on neighbours' doors, but no-one answered.
She heard the front door to the building open and close, and ran down two flights of stairs into the street. However as she ran outside she saw Cotton lurking in the shadows of a neighbour's doorway. He said: "Run. You'd better run. I've got you...."
The woman ran from door to door in her dressing gown, trying to raise the alarm. She chose houses with video doorbells "to leave a trail of evidence" as she feared she would be murdered.
Cotton caught up with her and began banging her head off one of the doors. A neighbour came out and Cotton left, calling the police to report he had committed a crime. The woman was taken to the neighbours house and police arrived. She had reddening to her head and neck and a scratch to her back.
Bravely taking to the witness box at Preston Crown Court, she read a powerful statement about the impact of the attack on her.
She said: "At 3am on February 16, Ben Cotton travelled approximately 25 minutes in the car from Wigan to my home address. 25 minutes he could have turned around, 25 minutes he could have said he was wrong, but he set out to ambush me, to inflict fear and pain, and I believe to kill me.
"I never thought I would become a victim and never thought anyone I cared about and trusted would hurt me. It has left a profound effect on my life. Being attacked in my own home is a violation I can't put into words."
As a result of the incident, the woman said she has been unable to return to her home. "My refuge was turned into a battleground", she said.
"Ben has taken away my sense of self-worth and made me feel disposable. The memories, trauma and emotions will stay with me for the rest of my life. I found myself trapped inside my home with a monster in an evil game of cat and mouse."
She said she now feels scared to open her heart to people, especially men, and is on a waiting list for trauma therapy.
She said: "You Ben Cotton are a coward. You repeatedly told me you are a monster. You're not. You're not even a man." She added her only comfort was that her child was staying with his father that night and did not witness what happened.
Kristian Cavanagh, defending, said Cotton had served in the armed forces and having reflected on the incident feels shame at what he did. Cotton pleaded guilty to ABH, malicious communications and criminal damage.
Further charges of intentional strangulation, threats to kill and false imprisonment were left to lie on file.
Sentencing him to two and a half years in prison, the Honorary Recorder of Preston, Judge Robert Altham, said: "She genuinely believed, for good reason, that he would kill her. The victim says the whole incident lasted about an hour.
"Her appreciation of the length of such a traumatic incident is bound to be affected by circumstance but it must have taken place over a prolonged period. She tells the court of the serious affect of being attacked in her own home at night. She takes medication and needs therapy. She feels irreversibly changed.
"She had to move out of her house as a result of the attack and has not returned since. This assault has had a substantial impact on her."
