Violent Sheffield man stalked ex for months when she ditched him after years of abuse
Sozzled Johnson would come home from the pub and start rows with his partner then “slap” her face or “pull her hair”
An abusive man stalked his partner for months when she worked up the courage to ditch him after years of abuse and violence, a court heard.
Martin Johnson, aged 66, controlled “all aspects” of his stoic partner of 30 years’ life - not permitting her to socialise with other men and deciding “where they were or were not going”.
Sozzled Johnson would come home from the pub and start rows, prosecutor Nicola Quinney told Sheffield Crown Court, then “slap” her face or “pull her hair”.
However in February 23, 2024, when Johnson pushed his partner down the stairs outside a pub and pinned her by the neck in a huff she finally gave him his marching orders.
Ms Quinney described how in the lead-up the Sheffield man became enraged because his now ex was dancing and said “they were leaving”.
“That continued when they got home and he called her a fat, ugly, b*****d,” said the prosecutor.
“After that the relationship came to an end and she left the defendant.”
During the first week of the separation Johnson called the complainant “15-20 times a day” and she had to change her phone number, the court heard.
Ms Quinney said fixated Johnson would frequently park up outside or drive past her place of work, the bus stop she used and the home she shared with her new partner - often shouting from the window of his car.
In a statement read to the court his victim described being “embarrassed” that she put up with Johnson’s nonsense for “so long,” adding: “It became normal to me and I stopped being scared.”
Curtis Dunkley, defending, said his client “accepts what he has done” and “regrets what’s happened”. He added that his client suffered with rheumatoid arthritis and asthma and supported his grandchildren.
The court heard Johnson had convictions going back to the 1970s however the most recent was a fraud and stolen goods matter in 2009.
Judge Megan Rhys, who was told Johnson only admitted everything on the day of his trial, said: “It’s disappointing to see that despite pleading guilty you continue to deny your behaviour.
“You have no empathy or remorse for your victim.”
However noting Johnson’s poor health, the age of the offence and the probation service had recommended work in the community, she suspended a 34-month sentence for two years.
Johnson, of East Glade Road, Arbourthorne, admitted coercive control, actual bodily harm and stalking.
He was handed 150 hours of unpaid work, a thinking skills programme and a five-year restraining order.