Kelly’s mum warned her daughter to leave her abusive fella, but he wouldn’t let her go…
Sitting in the pub with my sister, I locked eyes with a guy I’d never seen before.
Later when I popped outside for a cigarette, he sidled up to me.
‘It’s my birthday today,’ he said, telling me his name was Tony and that he was 19 – two years my senior.
After talking for hours, Tony kissed me.
We swapped numbers and were soon inseparable.
My sister and I hadn’t had an easy upbringing. So, when Tony promised to look after me, I fell for him.
‘Come and stay at my mum’s,’ he said.
At first, he was a protective boyfriend.
‘I’ve never felt this way about anyone before,’ he said.
Only, within weeks, his attention turned suffocating.
When I tried to speak to my sister, he didn’t like it.
‘You don’t need anyone else,’ he stormed.
But the truth was, I felt trapped.
One night, Tony took me out for dinner.
After a couple of drinks, we were walking home when a young man glanced at me.
Suddenly, Tony spun round to face me.
‘You were looking at that guy!’ he raged.
‘I wasn’t!’ I said.
'I had to get away from him'
Furious, he pushed me into
the middle of traffic on a busy road.
Headlights raced towards me and car horns beeped as drivers swerved to avoid me.
A few weeks
later, I seized my chance to get away.
I told Tony I was going to visit a relative, planning to never go back to him.
But he wouldn’t let me go.
We were arguing when Tony lunged at me and put his hands around my throat, squeezing
until I passed out.
When I came round, dizzy and in pain, he was just sitting watching TV, as if nothing had happened.
As time went on, despite his behaviour, I couldn’t imagine a life without him.
I blocked out the bad things
he did, and tried to believe we could be happy.
Then one time, I woke up to find Tony touching me sexually.
Shocked, I told him that I hadn’t consented, but he didn’t seem to care.
When we’d been together for seven months, I was due to stay over at a friend’s. Only, Tony hid my trainers so I couldn’t leave.
Later in bed, he turned to me.
‘Can we have sex tonight?’ he asked.
I didn’t feel well and told him I didn’t want to. But he forced himself inside me.
‘Stop,’ I pleaded, in tears.
But he carried on.
The next day, he tried to be nice, but I was horrified by what he’d done.
You raped me, I thought.
After work, I went to a relative’s and texted Tony to tell him it was over.
But he wouldn’t leave me alone and, worn down, I ended up agreeing to go back to him.
Days later, I found out I was pregnant.
I was excited, but scared I’d be bound to Tony forever.
It made me realise something. I had to get away from him.
When he was due at court for driving offences weeks later, I planned to flee.
But it was as if he knew.
The day before, he pulled out
a Stanley knife and rested it on my stomach.
‘We’re going to be together as a family,’ he said. ‘That’s how it’s going to be.’
Once he’d gone, I took a train to my mum’s, where I collapsed in her arms.
‘If you stay with him, it’s not going to end well,’ she said.
She’s right, I thought, and told police he’d held a knife to my bump and he was arrested.
After that, I was constantly on edge, convinced Tony would track me down.
But as the weeks turned to months without any word, I started to relax.
In time, I had a little boy. I focused all my energy on giving him the best life.
Eight years passed. Then I logged on to Facebook…
Hi stranger, the message said.
It was Tony.
He said he’d changed and longed to meet his son.
Despite everything, I wondered if keeping his son from him was the right thing.
I arranged to meet him in public first, just me and him.
He greeted me with a smile and a hug.
'He gripped me by the throat'
‘I’ve missed you,’ he said. ‘I was young, grieving and drinking. I’m sorry for everything.’
He said he wanted a fresh start.
‘One step at a time,’ I said.
After a few video calls, we arranged for Tony to meet my son.
I’d never had a stable upbringing, and it made me even more keen to make things work with Tony.
Agreeing to try again, six months later, I was pregnant.
I hoped this time, things would be different.
But within months, Tony was back in prison.
I knew we were over for good. Still, I visited him to try to keep the link between him and my boy.
And after my daughter was born and Tony was released, he had supervised visits.
One day, he came over and started kissing me.
‘No,’ I protested.
‘Be quiet,’ he ordered, before pinning me to the bed.
As he raped me, flashbacks of all the times he’d hurt me flooded my mind.
He hadn’t changed a bit. Tony just wanted to control me.
Afterwards, I called the police and told them he’d assaulted me.
But I still couldn’t bring myself to tell them about the rapes.
Not long after, a pregnancy test turned positive.
I felt a mixture of emotions, but I knew I wanted the baby.
To my horror, Tony was released on bail.
I couldn’t get
away from him.
He came to see the kids a couple of times and, when he found out I was pregnant, he said it meant we had another chance.
One day, at eight and a half months gone, I left the front
door open as my son played outside.
Suddenly, Tony swaggered in.
He gripped me by the throat, pushed me against the doorframe and pulled my hair.
Pain gripped me and I felt my waters break.
‘I’m having the baby!’ I cried.
But he just walked out.
I was bundled into an ambulance, but I had my little boy before we could reach the hospital.
Thankfully, he was OK.
Months later, the police came to see me.
They told me that Tony had attacked another woman.
It broke my heart, and I ended up pouring out everything he’d done to me, including the rapes.
It took hours, but the detective was patient and understanding.
In time, Anthony Gibson, 37, appeared
at the High Court in Edinburgh, where he denied a string of violent and sexual offences against me, two other former partners, and a fourth woman.
I wouldn’t have been able to face him in court, so I was relieved that I could give evidence by video link.
Still, I was shaking throughout.
Back home, I waited on tenterhooks for the verdict,
and when it came, I just broke down in tears.
He was convicted of 10 charges, including rape and indecent assault.
He was also found guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice, after contacting my friend while awaiting sentence to find out my address.
He was given an indefinite non-harassment order preventing him from contacting me.
Knowing a jury had believed me felt incredible.
Katrina Parkes, Scotland’s Procurator Fiscal for High Court Sexual Offending, said, ‘The offences carried out against these victims are utterly reprehensible. It is thanks to the bravery of these women for reporting him and giving evidence that this prosecution has been made possible.’
Anthony Gibson was sentenced to 13 years behind bars.
I’m proud of myself for getting justice. That man is a monster, and preyed on me at my most vulnerable.
If sharing my story helps just one victim seek help, no matter how long ago it happened, it will have been worth it.
Kelly Brown, 35, Fife