A vicious bully who once brutally beat up his girlfriend during an “atrocious attack” – and menacingly warned her that the only way that she would leave him was “in a body bag” – has been jailed for more violence.
Aggressive and bad-tempered James Tonkin had been jailed for four years in December 2021 but he ended up back in prison after jealously attacking another girlfriend after seeing messages from her ex-boyfriend on a phone, Hull Crown Court heard.
Tonkin, 37, of Rawcliffe Grove, off Boothferry Road, west Hull, admitted offences of assaulting the woman causing actual bodily harm, assaulting a police officer as an emergency worker and using threatening or abusive words or behaviour on March 28.
Daniel Ingham, prosecuting, said that Tonkin and his girlfriend were drinking together until the early hours. Cocaine was also being taken. Tonkin saw messages on a phone from her ex-boyfriend and went to grab the phone.
He backhanded her to her face and she pulled up her hand to defend herself. She was holding keys and he knocked her hand, causing the keys to be pushed into her face, leaving a mark. She stumbled backwards, tipping over a bedside table, causing bruises to her right leg and shoulder. She lost her balance and fell over.
The woman left the property and Tonkin was arrested. He was put into the back of a police van but became aggressive. During the journey, he hurled racist abuse at a police officer, telling her that he hoped that she got raped. He was handcuffed but swung back both his hands towards an officer.
Tonkin had convictions for 38 previous offences between 2004 and 2021, including being jailed for four years on December 17, 2021 for two offences of assaulting his then girlfriend, causing actual bodily harm, and another of assaulting a police officer as an emergency worker.
Rachel Scott, mitigating, said that Tonkin had been recalled to prison until June 16 after breaching his licence from the four-year sentence by committing the latest offences. He had suffered alcohol and drugs problems.
The relationship had originally been positive but he turned back to drugs and alcohol. “He has behaved in this terrible way,” said Miss Scott. “He knows that, with his record, this must be a prison sentence.
“He is very remorseful for his actions, which is a development for him. Previously, he has not been able to show this insight. While in custody, he has been working with the drug and alcohol team. He knows that he will have disappointed the court by returning.”
Tonkin was jailed for 12 weeks.
The previous hearing in December 2021 was told that a woman heard arguing outside a block of flats and saw Tonkin “ragging” his then girlfriend about in June of that year. She heard the victim screaming and telling Tonkin to get off her.
About 10 or 15 minutes later, the lights came on in Tonkin’s flat and the witness saw an “atrocious attack” on his girlfriend. Tonkin dragged the woman by her hair, punched her in her face and put his hands around her throat.
He picked her up by her hair and repeatedly punched her to the face and head. He told her that if she were ever to leave him, it would be in a body bag. The police arrived and found the victim on a sofa with her hair soaking wet with blood.
She had swelling on her head, lumps on her face, swollen lips and eyes and bruises to her arms and legs.
There was blood coming from her nose and mouth and she was described as moaning loudly.
In an earlier incident, Tonkin threw the woman against a wall in April 2021, causing injuries including to the nose and eye socket. There was blood on her head and around her eye. Tonkin was later erratic and aggressive when arrested and he turned his head and spat in a police officer’s face.
Tonkin had previous convictions for wounding in 2004, assaulting police in 2008 and 2012 and making threats to kill in 2009. He had been jailed in 2010 for four years for robbery and for 16 weeks in 2020 for possessing a blade.