Paranoid bricklayer hit girlfriend with a shoe and dictated which way she walked her dog

Bricklayer Andrew Hillier was convicted a string of offences against two women, including coercive control and racially-aggravated assault.

The 37-year-old, of Highfield Road, Allerton Bywater, had begun the first relationship in October 2020 and moved in with the woman in January 2021.

It turned sour after he took cash and her bank card without permission, prosecutor Lauren Hemsley told Leeds Crown Court.

When she ended the relationship, Hillier continued to “bombard” her with messages on WhatsApp and Snapchat, three of which the police deemed as threatening or obscene.

On one occasion, the woman noticed her car had been egged, but put it down to youths. However, Hillier then sent a voice message singing: “How do you like you eggs in the morning?”

Interviewed by police, he admitted he was bitter about the break up and the sent the messages, but denied they were malicious.

While serving a seven-month jail sentence for attacking police officers, he began a relationship with a second woman in February this year. He was released a month later and moved in with her.

The court was told that by May, it had deteriorated into a controlling relationship with Hillier repeatedly accusing her of cheating on him.

He prevented her from seeing friends and would tell her which way to walk her pet, paranoid that she was having an affair with a neighbour.

He threw a phone at her eye on one occasion and racially abused her.

Following an argument, he also drove at 100mph with her in the car and threatened to crash and kill them both.

On July 27 he became angry when she was late for picking him up for work and turned violent, hitting her around the head with a shoe and throwing a mirror at her.

The neighbours heard the shouts and called the police, but Hillier claimed he was the victim.

He was found guilty of racially-aggravated harassment, racially-aggravated assault and coercive control after a trial. He admitted three counts of sending malicious messages to the first partner.

The court heard he has previous convictions including harassment and violence.

Mitigating, Glenn Parsons said that Hillier had witnessed his friend being murdered when he was younger which had affected him.

He said: “He has found it very difficult to trust people and he accepts he has become somewhat controlling.

"He is concerned about his loved ones and where they are, and this escalated.

"This sense of needing to control and where people has become distorted. There is recognition that he needs help.”

The Recorder of Leeds, Judge Guy Kearl KC handed Hillier a 38-month jail sentence.

He told him: “You are 37 and old enough to know better.

"There was a campaign by you against her (the first woman), bombarding her with messages.”

Referring to the second victim, he added: “You started to control her life, you racially abused her and it was persistent and repeated.”