Andrew Stockman, of Llay Place Avenue in Llay, appeared at Caernarfon Crown Court for sentence on Wednesday morning via video link from prison.
The 54-year-old was due to begin his trial on Monday this week for engaging in controlling and coercive behaviour towards his estranged wife, Sandra Stockman.
But on that day, he changed his plea to guilty and the matter was adjourned to Wednesday for sentence.
Richard Edwards, prosecuting, told the court the defendant and victim had been married for more than 30 years and have two adult children together.
The offending outlined in the defendant’s charge spanned from December 2015 to April 2025; the 2015 date being when the relevant legislation came into effect, Mr Edwards explained.
Ms Stockman had known the defendant since she was 15 and they started seeing each other a year later.
The defendant had “always had issues with alcohol” and his offending, in the main, was committed when he was under the influence of drink.
Some kind of physical abuse would happen every month, Mr Edwards explained.
And over the years, the victim left her husband several times, but always returned to him.
Over the last four years, they bought and ran a B&B together – and during this period the physical abuse seemed to stop; but the mental abuse continued.
Andrew Stockman (Image: NWP)
The court heard how they went to Spain over Christmas 2024 and when the victim had tried to make arrangements to fly home to see an ill acquaintance, the defendant “wouldn’t let her.”
He threw her out of the apartment they were staying in without her passport and left her “wandering around Benidorm with nowhere to go.”
It wasn’t until two or three days later that she was able to sneak back into the premises to recover the passport and fly home.
Following that holiday, the defendant told her he would change – but Ms Stockman had “heard this too many times.”
Summarising the abuse, Mr Edwards told the court that over the years the victim had been “kicked, punched, strangled numerous times and had lost count of the number of times he’d given her a black eye – including the night before her grandfather’s funeral.”
He’d regularly smash items in the house, verbally abuse her and lock doors to stop her leaving – as well as threatening to harm himself.
Furthermore, he’d spat in her face, threatened to kill her and constantly accused her of seeing other men.
On one occasion, the court heard, she’d been “held in her own home at knifepoint, having to climb out of a window.”
And on another, he told her he had a gun and they would be “dying together.”
He also told her: “I’m going to murder you and then kill myself because no other men can have you.”
Jemma Gordon, defending, told the court: “He’s expressed to me he has no intention of contacting her again, but he wants to rebuild his relationship with his sons.
“Alcohol really has been the defining feature of Mr Stockman’s life.
“He recognises the exacerbation of his mental health issues has been made worse due to his drinking.
“He has, over the years, tried to receive various psychiatric and mental health treatments but he has never managed to deal with his excessive drinking.
“But since his remand in custody, he has expressed this has been a turning point and the best thing that could have happened for him.
“He recognises he was out of control and that he will be remaining in custody.
“He’s now demonstrating and taking steps to address his offending behaviour.”
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Judge Timothy Petts told the defendant: “You were married to Sandra for many years and are now going through a divorce, as a consequence of all you’ve done to her.
“You became very abusive and controlling towards her.
“Your abuse took the form of frequent physical attacks and verbal and emotional abuse.
“She tried to leave you on many occasions, but you manipulated her to come back every time.
“She was clearly very afraid of what you would do to her or yourself.
“Frankly, it’s an appalling history of abuse to which you subjected Sandra and sadly she came to see it as normal behaviour.
“It has, in reality, blighted her entire adult life.”
The Judge handed down a 41 month custodial sentence, and an indefinite domestic abuse protection order.
Judge Petts specified that the order prohibits the defendant from entering the town of Llandudno – save for travelling to and from the Great Orme where his parents’ ashes are scattered, and only on the anniversary of their respective dates of birth and death.
