A brave woman whose boyfriend strangled her and sexually humiliated her has spoken of her relief that he is in jail. Luke Parry, 30, subjected Jessie King, 26, to coercive control and outbursts of violence because he believed she was cheating on him.
Last week he was jailed for three years and four months at Mold Crown Court and handed a five-year restraining order to protect Ms King. Mum of three Jessie says: “He put a rope around my neck because he’d found a message from a male friend on my phone. He was paranoid and jealous all the time.
“He would check me down below and say: ‘That’s been used.’ He filmed me, saying: ‘Tell everyone what you are, you’re a dirty slut.’ “He reminded me I had three children with three different men and said: ‘I’m your only option. Nobody else wants you.’ It took so much strength for me to go to the police but now he is behind bars I can finally rebuild my life and I’m slowly understanding that I am worth so much more.”
Jessie and Parry first met through friends in 2021. She says: “I knew he had a reputation for getting into fights as a teenager, but I thought he’d put all that behind him. He made me laugh and he was fun to be with. I wanted to commit but Luke didn’t.”
The relationship fizzled out and Jessie had a child with a new partner. But Luke came back into her life and demanded a DNA test. Jessie says: “The baby was not Luke’s, and I hadn’t cheated on him, we weren’t together. But he became very possessive, wanting me to himself all the time.
“I saw that as a sign he wanted to commit. I really wanted a family life for my children.” In March 2023, Jessie fell pregnant with Luke’s child. She says: “I really hoped we could settle down together. But Luke was jealous and paranoid, always accusing me of being unfaithful.
“He checked my phone every day, I went through five mobile phones because he’d throw my phone against the wall if he found a message from anyone he didn’t know. He smashed all my make-up so I couldn’t look nice. In a temper he punched he wall and broke his own arm, which he blamed me for. If I went to visit my Nan, he would accuse me of sleeping with her neighbours. He was obsessed.
“When I got home, he’d check me down below to see if I’d been cheating and he filmed me and forced me to admit that I was a slut and that I liked having sex with everyone. Because I had three different dads for my kids he’d say nobody would ever want me and he was my only option. I felt so trapped. I was miserable and yet I believed him; I didn’t think I deserved anything better.”
In April last year, the couple went camping and, in a rage, Parry again accused Jessie of cheating on him. She says: “he took a rope from the tent and pulled it tight round my neck. I managed to get my fingers in between, but I think he would have killed me. I had to beg him to let me go and I had a read weal across my neck afterwards.”
Jessie went to the police and Parry was arrested and placed on remand. Last week he pleaded guilty at Mold Crown Court to intentional strangulation and wounding and was jailed for three years and four months.
She says: “I felt so scared going to the police, he had convinced me I was worth nothing and nobody would believe me. I’ve had lots of support since, and I just want others to know that help is out there. It is worth it; I feel so proud of myself. My confidence is coming back, and he is in prison, where he belongs.”
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