Man jailed after locking woman in home for a week

Nigel Holdway, 49, was jailed for two-and-a-half years

A man has been jailed after he attacked a woman and locked her in his home for a week.

Nigel Holdway, of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, assaulted the woman when she tried to leave his house in July 2023.

Police said he slammed her head against the front door, leaving her with bruising and swelling on her face, before blocking the exits so she could not escape.

Holdway, 49, also took her phone to stop her from contacting anyone for help, a spokesperson for the force added.

He then drove the woman to her home after seven days and, a few days later, sent her her bloodstained clothes.

Police charged Holdway after the incident was reported to them and he later pleaded guilty to assaulting a person occasioning them actual bodily harm and three counts of breaching a restraining order.

He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on 25 March.