Man convicted of rape and controlling or coercive behaviour

A man who controlled women over a four-year period has been convicted of a string of charges, including rape, controlling or coercive behaviour, and actual bodily harm.

Portsmouth Crown Court heard that George De Bathe, 25, would cut the victims off from their family and friends and control them in a variety of different ways, including taking over their phones and social media, dictating what they wore and ate, and who they saw. He would threaten to kill himself and would even control their sleep, demanding that they constantly replied to his messages throughout the night.

He would also rape them and subject them to physical attacks. One woman was knocked unconscious on more than one occasion, while another was threatened at knife point before he started to strangle her. Some of the women described fearing that he was going to kill them.

Karen Cushing from the Crown Prosecution Service said: “George De Bathe subjected these women to significant pressure and manipulation, often threatening them and, on occasions, following through on those threats with physical violence.

“None of us can imagine the terror they experienced as a result of his controlling and coercive behaviour, ensuring that once he had cut them off from those closest to them, he could then dictate every part of their lives and even depriving them of sleep.

“The appalling impact that he had on the victims was clear from both their testimony and from those who were closest to them, who all talked about the changes in the behaviour they had seen in their loved ones.

“We would like to thank the victims in this case for speaking out. Despite claiming to one woman that the police couldn’t touch him and that we would never prosecute him, with their evidence, we were able to build a strong and compelling case against De Bathe to bring him to justice on behalf of the women that he tried so hard to manipulate and control.”