Ex-boyfriend jailed after woman falls from top-floor flat

A man has been sentenced to 17 years for manslaughter after his ex-partner fell from a top floor flat.

Leonidas Georgalla, 51, has been sentenced to 17 years' imprisonment after his former partner fell from a top floor flat. He had previously admitted to breaching the restraining order on the day that Kathleen John fell three floors from a window.

Upon returning home in the early hours of Friday 29 June 2022, friends and family of the pair saw Georgalla standing in front of the flat claiming that Kathleen had fallen from a window.

Body Worn Video footage recorded by officers attending the scene also captured Georgalla making part admissions, where he is heard saying ‘I did it’ before saying that ‘she jumped’.

Kathleen John was found to have died as a result of a fall while attempting to escape an unlawful assault upon her by Georgalla within the flat following the discovery of distinct facial injuries and multiple bruises on her limbs sustained in an attack prior to her fall.

The flat was found in a state of disorder and chaos that it had not been left in earlier that day, with numerous objects out of place and knocked over.

Blood was also found in various parts of the flat alongside a clump of hair that had been forcibly pulled out from Kathleen’s scalp in the living room and kitchen area of the home.

Months prior to Kathleen’s death, Georgalla sent her a series of highly aggressive and threatening messages with repeated threats to kill her. He was subsequently convicted of harassment and breaching an existing restraining order. A further restraining order was then imposed, which he went on to breach.

Georgalla attended the Central Criminal Court today where he was sentenced to a total of 17 years for manslaughter and acting in breach of a restraining order.

Emma Currie from the CPS said: “Leonidas Georgalla had a history of violence against women, with offences in New Zealand, Spain and the UK. The injuries Kathleen John sustained speak eloquently of the severity of Georgalla’s attack which led to Kathleen’s attempt to seek refuge outside the window and her subsequent fall to her death. The CPS are committed to bringing perpetrators of violence against women and girls to justice”